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QUEEN VICTORIA, 1877, 




LORD DUFTERIN, K.P, G.C.M.G.,K.C.B. 



' 'I** * _ 



SHORT HISTORY 



DOMINION OF CANADA, 



FKOM 1500 TO 1878 



■WITH THE 



CONTEMPOEANEOUS HISTOEY OF ENGLAND 
AND THE UNITED STATES, 



TOGETHER WITH 



A BRIEF ACCOUNT OF THE TURKO-RUSSIAN WAR OF 1877, 
AND THE PREVIOUS AND SUBSEQUENT COMPLICA- 
TIONS BETWEEN ENGLAND AND RUSSIA. 



By CHARLES R. teTTLB, 

Author of '■''Popular History of the Dominion of Canada^ with art engravings^"" " History of Border 

Wars of Two Centuries,'^ **■ EncyclopcEdia of Universal History and Useful Knowledge^*'' 

Histories of the States of Michigan^ Indiana^ Wisconsin^ /otfa, Kansas^ etc. 



^ulty KltuSitvatctT with ^Ucl and Wood ^ngtavittOisi, 



BOSTON: N^^WAtv«H$ 

LEE AND SHEPARD, PUBLISHERS. 

NEW YORK: CHARLES T. DILLINGHAM, 

1878. 



Copyright, 
By Charles E. Tuttle, 

1878. 



Electrotypers and Stereotypers, Boston. 



M 



^' 






PREFACE. 



# 




D. DeSALABEURI. 



It is generally said that no one ever reads a "Preface." 

This will do for a* general rule, 
if you allow an exception in 
favor of authors in respect of 
their own books. But I am 
determined, if possible, to se- 
cure a better regard for these 
prefatory sayings than that 
which the above rule permits ; 
and this result will be sought in 
not referring to any of those ^y" 
subjects usually paraded in re- 
marks thus located. In the first 
place, I have been impressed 

with the idea that the French nationality, as such, is destined to 

disappear entirely from the continent 

of North America. If the idea is not 

an error, it may be regarded as a most 

singular problem, that a people with 

such a distinctive nationality and 

lanirua2'e,who at one time extended 

their possessions from one to the 

other of the two greatest gulfs in the 

western world, were destined to be 

swallowed up in conquest, and to 

disappear beneath the rising floods 

of assimilation. The keen observa- 
tion of to-day is bearing testimony 

to the rapid decline of all that is peculiarly characteristic of the 




HON. LOUIS J. PAPIXEAU. 



iv PREFACE. 



genuine Frenchman in Canada ; and in the French districts of 
the United States the work of assimihition is still more notice- 
able. It is worthy of careful examination that Anglo Saxon 
civilization cannot be circumscribed. Who can doubt that, if 
Christianity is to embrace the whole world, and bring the entire 
race in harmony with its good principles of government and 
in voluntary obedience to its King, Anglo-Saxonism, having 
closely allied itself with Christianity, will not also become co- 
extensive with the race of the distant future. But it is one 
duty of histoiy to immortalize the contrasts between distinctive 
nationalities ; hence the reader is presented in this connection 
with the portraits of two great Frenchmen, possibly the two 
greatest French statesmen of Canada connected with the his- 
tory of the present century. These are the Honorable Charles 
Mitchel D'Irumberry DeSalaberry, C.B., and the Honorable 
Louis Joseph Papineau, both of whom have passed from the 
stage of action of this world. The former was the scion of 
an illustrious French family. His father was a personal 
friend of the Duke of Kent, father of Queen Victoria. De- 
Salaberry obtained a commission in the English service, 
and fouo-ht ao-ainst the French in the West Indies. He 
took a prominent part in the war between England and the 
United States in 1812-15, and covered himself with glory at 
the battle of Chateauguay. For these patriotic and gallant 
services he received an autograph letter from the Prince 
Regent, and the decoration of C.B. After the war he served in 
the Legislative Council, and died in 1829. The latter, the 
Honorable Louis Joseph Papineau, has a more recent history. 
At a comparatively early age he was called to a seat in the Par- 
liament of Quebec, and soon become the leader of the Re- 
formers. He was an eloquent debater, and persisted in de- 
manding reforms for his people until royalty was offended. 
Under his bold leadership the rebellion at length broke out, 
and blood was shed. After its suppression, Mr. Papineau 
escaped to the United States, whence he went to France, 
where he remained eight years.. The queen's amnesty enabled 
him to return to Canada, in 1847, where he Avas soon after 



PREFACE. 





HON. W. E. GLADSTONE. 



MARY A. LIVEKMORE. 



reelected to Parliament by his old bonstituency. Ho died 
in 1871. 

I present the portraits of the Honorable W. E. Gladstone, 
and the not less honorable Mary A. Livermore, side by side, 

becanse I consider them 

the two most interest- 
ing representatives of 

their respective sexes 

now living. If Mr. 

Gladstone is not the 

greatest living scholar 

and statesman, a great 

portion of mankind are 

mistaken. His abilities 

in the affarreijate have 
no equal in the whole range of Englishmen from the earliest 
times to the present day. He is one of the few men Avhose 
great popularity is not based so much upon his mastery of one 
particular department as upon his mastery of many depart- 
ments. His specialty appears to be that to which he turns 
his attention, whether it be art, science, literature, finance, 
or the higher questions of moral and political philosophy. 
His statesmanship has given a higher dignity to the Liberal 
party than it has hitherto enjoyed, and his scholarship has 
added a greater solidity to English literature. Mrs. Livermore 
cannot, in any sense, be compared to Mr. Gladstone, except 
that both are moral reformers. She is not a woman of great 
intellectual attainments, though her general information is 
creditable to one of ordinary mental poAvers. She is remark- 
able rather for the strength and correctness of her convictions, 
and for the influence which she sways by the eloquence of an 
earnest life, than for her natural endowments or mental acquire- 
ments. Her life thus far is a monument of good deeds, and her 
sex will hereafter for many generations reap the fruits of her 
noble efforts. 

The portraits of the American poets, Longfellow and Whit- 
tier, will awaken the best emotions in every reader. With 



VI 



PREFACE. 





HENRY W. LONGFELLOW. 



JOHN G. WIIITTIER. 



blameless and praiseworthy private lives ; with a remarkable 
degree of poetical genius; witl\ the noblest patriotism and the 
truest Christian devotion, they have won the first grand dis- 
tinctive features for 
American poetry, and 
given their countrymen 
works which will not 
only remain a perpetual 
source of holy inspira- 
tion, but immortalize 
much that is noble, 
heroic, and Avorthy in 
American histoiy, and 
thus hand down to fu- 
ture ages the inspirations of the deeds, principles, conflicts, 
and victories of the past and the present. America has 
many poets, — some of no ordinary brilliancy, — but Long- 
fellow and Whittier have won a place in the afiections of the 
people which their contemporaries cannot hope to reach. 

Now, in conclusion, let me congratulate myself upon having 
written a "Preface" that will probably be read in preference, 
at least, to any other portion of the work, and add simply this. 
The present work is partly compiled, and its author does not 
wish to claim for it any very great degree of excellence. It 
is, undoubtedly, a useful and valuable book for those unac- 
quainted Avith the subjects treated. The writer very much de- 
sires that American readers will pass over the first introductory 
chapter, which is intended only for Canadians, and which has 
been inserted, much against the author's wish, to satisfy de- 
mands of the publishers in the Dominion, Avho seek to increase 
their sales by the favorable newspaper criticisms and other 
matters included in that article. 

CHARLES R. TUTTLE. 

Boston, June, 1878. 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER I. 
Introductory Remarks .... 9 

CHAPTER n. 
Introductory Remarks (continued). 23 



CHAPTER III. 
The Norse Discoveries . 



34 



CHAPTER IV. 
Discovery of Columbus — other 
Discoveries 41 

CHAPTER V. 
American Exploration .... 55 

CHAPTER VI. 
England from 1500 to 1600 ... 62 

CHAPTER VII. 
Canada and Acadia, 1600 to 1748 . 71 

CHAPTER VIII. 
Canada and Acadia, 1748 to 1760 . 84 

CHAPTER IX. 
The Anglo-American Colonies . 98 

CHAPTER X. 
England from 1600 to 1760 . . .129 

CHAPTER XI. 
Canada from 1760 to 1777 . . .146 

CHAPTER XII. 
The War for Independence, 1760 
TO 1774 152 



CHAPTER XIII. 
The \Var for Independence, 1774 
TO 1777 160 

CHAPTER XIV. 
The ^yAR FOR Independence, 1777 
TO 1783 170 

CHAPTER XV. 
Englaktd FROM 1760 TO 1778 . . .180 

CHAPTER X\'I. 
England in the Eighteenth Cen- 
tury 184 

CHAPTER XVn. 
The Canadas, 1780 to 1840 . . .188 

CIL^PTER XVHI. 
The War of 1812-15 198 



CHAPTER XIX. 
England from 1780 to 1840 



217 



CHAPTER XX. 
Canada from 1840 to 1867 . . . .228 

CHAPTER XXI. 
Canada from 1840 to 1867 {con- 
iinued) 235 

CHAPTER XXII. 
Canada from 1840 to 1867 {con- 
tinued) 246 

CHAPTER XXIII. 
Canada from 1840 to 1867 {con- 
tinued) 272 



Vlll 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER XXIV. 
Acadia from IZ-iS to 17S4 .... 302 

CHAPTER XXV. 
Nova Scotia from 1784 to 1837 . 307 

CHAPTER XXVI. 
Nova Scotia from 1837 to 1852 . 318 

CHAPTER XXVH. 
Nova Scotia from 1852 to 1867 . 328 

CHAPTER XXVIH. 
New Brunswick, 1784 to 1832 . . 334 

CHAPTER XXIX. 

New Brunswick, 1832 to 1867 . . 342 



CHAPTER XXX. 
Prince Edward Island, 1663 to 
1787 



355 



CHAPTER XXXI. 
Prince Edward Island, 1787 to 



1847 



363 



CHAPTER XXXII. 
Prince Edward Island, 1847 to 
1875 376 

CHAPTER XXXIII. 
United States from 1840 to 1867. 397 

CHAPTER XXXIV. 
The American Civil War . . . 412 

CHAPTER XXXV. 
The American Civil "War {con- 
tinued) 434 



CHAPTER XXXVI. 
England from 1840 to 1856 ... 445 

CHAPTER XXXVII. 
The Dominion of Canada. . . . 454 

CHAPTER XXXVHI. 
Dominion of Canada {continued) . 473 

CHAPTER XXXIX. 

Dominion of Canada {continued) . 492 

CHAPTER XL. 

Dominion of Canada {continued) . 498 

CHAPTER XLI. 
Dominion of Canada {continued) . 516 

CHAPTER XLII. 
Dominion of Canada {continued) . 555 

CHAPTER XLIII. 
Dominion of Canada {continued) , 564 

CHAPTER XLIV. 
United States, 1867 to 1878 . . .576 

CHAPTER XLV. 
England from 1856 to 1866 . . , 585 



CHAPTER XL VI. 
England from 1866 to 1878 



595 



CHAPTER XL VII. 
England in the Nineteenth Cen- 
tury C03 

CHAPTER XLVIII. 
The Turko-Russian "War .... 608 

CHAPTER XLIX. 
The Eastern Question G47 



HISTORY 



DOMINION OF CANADA. 



CHAPTER I. 

INTEODUCTORY REMAEKS. 

CANADIAN HISTORIES THEIR AUTHORS TUTTLE's HISTORIES CHARLES B. 

TUTTLE HIS EARLY HOME AND LIFE HIS WORKS HIS CRITICS — GENERAL 

OBSERVATIONS ON THE DOMINION OF CANADA. ^ 

1. My dear reader, this is the age of Canadian histories, 
and it has been inaugurated within tlie past two years. I l^new 
it would come two years ago, and predicted it then, in Mon- 
treal, — not that I was in any sense a prophet, but that I had had 
experience of a sort which justified this conclusion. I will 
confess to the conviction that I have never performed any task 
as well as it has seemed to me that many others might have 
accomplished it, and yet my work, with all its imperfections, 
has had hosts of imitators. Some six or seven years ago I began 
a "History of the United States, in State volumes." By the 
time the first volume was ready for the market, two other 
parties were in the same business ; but I pushed on vigorously, 
and out of forty States succeeded in covering INIichigan, 
Indiana, Wisconsin, Iowa, and Kansas. It seemed to me, at 
one time, that half the authors and publishers in the United 
States were engaged on State histories. The late Rev. John 
S. C. Abbott, one of the most prolific of American writers, 
gobbled up Maine and Ohio. Another gentleman, whose name 
I forget, probably because his book did not figure prominently 
enough to make an impression on any one, ran oflf with Massa- 
chusetts. The case of Pennsylvania was precisely similar, only 



12 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

cation was organized among a class of people who are not dis- 
tinguished for their love of literature ; that it has required 
nothing short of true genius in planning, and tireless energy 
and exhaustless perseverance in executing, to save the enter- 
prise from financial ruin ; that much of the compiling and edit- 
ing was done in the midst of this real battle for victory ; that I 
wrote another large work of two volumes during the same time ; 
and, lastly, that when completed it will be, Avith a few exceptions, 
in an artistic and mechanical point of view the most elaborate 
history of any nation of the globe ever published, — when I 
have said this, I have given every reasonable person a sufficient 
explanation for every imperfection of the work ; nay, more, — 
ample ground for imiversal gratitude that any one should have 
entered upon so hazardous an enterprise." 

With the exception of the last sentence, in which the author 
seems to compliment himself, the foregoing might be construed 
into a sort of an acknowledgment that the ^vork to which it 
refers has no general merit other than as indicating the energy 
and perseverance of its author. This is because the writer 
knows, as no one else can ever know, how completely it fails 
to reach the standard of his own ideal work, as also to reach 
such a degree of perfection as will satisfy the discriminating 
intelligence of the three countries where it will most circulate. 
And yet, after all, there is no great cause for complaint on 
the part of the public, or discouragement on the part of the 
writer. My previous history of the Dominion, when complete, 
and when its work in years to come, as a representative of the 
British-Canadian nation, shall be completed, will have done 
more towards vindicating the true position of the Dominion in 
the eyes of the world than any other literary eflbrt of the kind 
put forth in the past history of the British-American provinces. 
Our country needed a better history, though not a more expen- 
sive one ; but since no one has been found better qualified for 
the task, who was willing to make the sacrifice of time and 
money such as an enterprise of this kind is sure to impose, it 
needed and will gratefully accept that one. The country needed 
such a work, in the first place, that its citizens might be awak- 
ened to the inculcation of a higher and nobler sentiment of 
patriotism, — a greater love for that country which our lieloved 
sovereign has named the " Dominion of Canada ; " and nothing 
will produce this result more completely or in a more satisfactory 
manner than an elaborate and widely circulated history and 
description of its industries, institutions, and resources. The 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 13 

nation from which wc sprang, and of which, God grant, we may 
long continne to form a part, has such a glorious record in the 
triumphs of war and peace, and has so tilled the whole world with 
the fame of her achievements for Christian civilization, that in 
our holy aud enthusiastic loyalty to the crown and kingdom we 
have neglected the still more sacred loyalty to our native or 
adopted Canada. The motto of British- Americans should be, 
" Canada for the crown and kingdom means the crown and 
kingdom for Canada ; " for the destiny of Canada, while it does 
not necessarily mean the destiny of all British sul)jects, means 
the destiny of every citizen of the Dominion. But the incul- 
cation of this spirit of national pride means no inharmony with 
a continuance of that loyalty which makes us worthy subjects 
of the imperial crown ; and in this faith I dedicated my previous 
work "To the people of Canada who hate annexation, and love 
independence only as they look for it in a perpetual continuance 
of the political, commercial, and kindred ties which bind us to 
the United Kingdom." The country needed such a work, in 
the second place, that the people of both Great Britain and the 
United States might be more widely informed concerning the 
growth and development of our political institutions, the value 
and extent of our natural and commercial resources, and the 
probable near future greatness of the confederacy as a lirst-rate 
power among the nations of the earth. Previous to the Phila- 
delphia Exposition of 187(>, with some slight exceptions in favor 
of the inhabitants of the northern Xew England States and the 
southern and western borders of the Great Lakes, the people 
of the United States knew comparatively little or nothing of 
Canada ; and, in the absence of such information, we were too 
often regarded with general contempt. But the Centennial 
revealed Canada to thousands and thousands of American 
citizens for the first time ; and nothing, in my opinion, has 
transpired since Lord Dufferin came as governor-general to the 
Dominion, which reflects more credit upon his most excellent 
administration than the position which our country so nobly ^ 
assumed in that memorable exposition. This and my previous 
history, circulating as they are through every State of the 
Union, will serve to intensify the admiration for Canadian in- 
dustries and institutions, which the Dominion exhibits at the 
Centennial Plxposition awakened. As to the need of creating a • 
more popular sentiment in favor of us in Great Britain, 1 shall 
have nothinir to sav here. Emjland is not a child. She is old, 



14 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

aristocratic, proiitl, even haughty. But she is just ; and wc can 
best command her respect by respecting ourselves more. 

G. I am gratified at the reception which was accorded my 
previous History of Canada. The journals, even of the wealthy 
and influential class, had many words of commendation. In- 
deed, the entire press of the Dominion, with a single excep- 
tion, so far as I am now aware, spoke in terms of favor and 
praise of that work. I will give, following, two extracts 
characteristic of these reviews, one from the leading consei-va- 
tive, and the other from the representative liberal journal of 
the Dominion. The " xMontreal Daily Gazette," of Nov. 20, 
1877, contained a review of the work, of which I give extracts : 
" This is not the first time that the readers of the ' Gazette ' have 
heard of this great literary enterprise, so highly creditable to 
all concerned in it. When the first two numbers were issued, 
we gave a sketch of the plan of the work, and also a forecast of 
its merits from the promise then afforded. This promise, we are 
glad to see, has been faithfully kept. Each succeeding number 
has surprised us with some new excellence, till, now that the first 
volume has reached completion, the author and publishers 
have good reason to present it to the world with the fullest con- 
fidence. Indeed, when the difiiculties which had to be sur- 
mounted, the labor that had to be accomplished, and the ex- 
pense that had to be incurred, are taken into consideration, we 
cannot but admire the courage and the perseverance which 
carried the undertaking to so great a success. A little more 
than eighteen months ago the first steps were taken towards 
the publication of the work, of which the beautiful volume 
before us is the first fruits of accomplishment, and only those 
who have had experience of similar enterprises can appreciate 
the intellectual and material industry which it represents. Let 
us just consider what it is. We have here a history of the 
Dominion from the days when Jac(pies Cartier stood upon 
Mount Ivoyal, mapping out in his mind the vast region which 
he was to bequeath to his successors, to the time when, after 
changeful centuries, the whole domain, from ocean to ocean, 
entered into the pact of confederation, and Avas enrolled, the 
youngest but not the least, in the sisterhood of nations. The 
story of the heroic age of New France, — Champlain's un- 
daunted energy and De Frontenac's laborious victories ; the 
tyranny and rapacity of Bigot ; the fiill of chivalrous JMontcalm ; 
the foundation of Quebec and Montreal ; the discovery of the 
Mississippi, and all the manifold events and scenes that grouped 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 15 

aroimcl and intervened between these central points, — this 
story had to be told in glowing words, and yet with accnracy of 
detail, so as to be fresh and interesting to the reader, while at 
the same time it might be trustworthy as an authority. Then, 
starting from the Battle of the Plains, in 1759, the career of 
British rule had to be followed through all its changes, the rise 
and progress of each colony had to be described, the history of 
constitutional government had to be sketched, until the day 
when, after many struggles and not a few perils, the grand ' new 
departure ' of confederation gathered all British North America 
into one. To write such a history was surely a herculean labor, 
and to have done it successfully deserves no slight praise. 
And that Mr. Tuttle has succeeded wonderfully no one who 
examines this volume can hesitate to say. It is a work of 
which every Canadian ought to be proud, and will long con- 
tinue to be the standard illustrated history of the Dominion. 

" According to the plan which the author set before him, the 
entire history was to be complete in two grand quarto volumes, 
of fourteen parts each. The first part, of which we have been 
speaking, contains, as already intimated, the history of British 
North America from 1535 to 18(37, — the history of each 
province to the time of its admission into the confederation 
being given separately. The matter of this history is drawn 
from the most authentic sources, Mr. Tuttle having spared 
neither pains nor expense to obtain all the information he re- 
quired. The arrangement is admirable, the style animated, 
yet correct, and in his weighing of fact and character the author 
has shown true historical judgment. Throughout, the work 
bears the marks of genius and scholarship, combined with 
immense energy. The sources of knowledge are given, which 
is both a great aid and a satisfaction to the reader, and nothing 
is omitted that is of interest or that bears, however lightly, on 
the progress of the Dominion. But on these points it is 
scarcely necessary to say anjthing, Mr. Tuttle's reputation as 
an historical writer being as extensive as this continent. In 
the preface he says: 'The federal union of 1867 constituted 
British America a British nation, with a constitution and gov- 
ernment founded on wisdom and justice. The ten years which 
have elapsed since the union was consummated are full of 
flattering testimonials to the wisdom of that union, and the 
present condition of the J'oung nation points to a near future 
national greatness of surpassing magnitude. In view of these 
changes, the present seems to demand the publication of this 



IG HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

volume.' Every one who reads these words will agree with 
the writer, and when he sees the suggestion crowned by so 
splendid a result, he cannot but be grateful to those to whom 
it is due. . . . The work is dedicated in the following 
words, beautifully printed in blue ink, with red underlining, 
and borders of gold, purple and gold, alternating ; ' To the 
people of the Dominion of Canada, who hate annexation, and 
look for independence only in the perpetual continuance of the 
political, commercial, and kindred ties which bind British 
America to the United Kingdom, this volume is most respect- 
fully dedicated by the author.' We hope the author's loyalty, 
as thus exemplified, will find a hearty and practical response 
in a speedy sale of his work. In the introduction the reader is 
prepared for the pleasant and instructive study, on which he 
is about to enter, by a sketch which includes the causes which 
led to confederation, a resume of the qualities of the population 
and its elements of national greatness, a statement of the vari- 
ous nationalities and religious creeds, and their effects on 
character ; the climate and its influences ; and closing with an 
encouraging picture of our material and intellectual progress, 
as presented in the honor-roll of Canada's illustrious children. 
The promise of delight and benefit given in this introduction is 
amply fulfilled in the history itself, Avhich is not merely a dry 
skeleton of facts, but bears on every page the impress of the 
writer's earnestness, patriotism, and independence. And as, 
guided by his pen, we read of the providential events and the 
great deeds which have raised this Dominion from its first rude 
beginning to its present prosperous and growing life, we are 
constrained to share in his hopefulness for its future, while we 
thank him for the feeling which he inspires. We see in this 
volume by what means each of the provinces rose above its 
difficulties and perplexities, until the day came when it was no 
longer to live for itself alone. In the second volume we shall 
see how all the provinces united have worked together for each 
other's good ; how, one after another, they have striven to 
repress petty local jealousies and ambitions, and to unite 
their energies in the prosecution of one great, overmastering 
aim, — the progress and the glory of the nation formed by 
them all. The history of the first ten years of confederation 
forms, indeed, a subject of exceeding interest to all Canadians, 
and we shall await with some impatience, but with no want of 
confidence, the appearance of Mr. Tuttle's second volume. It 
will, however, contain a great deal more than the ten years' 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. ]7 

history of tlio Dominion. Besides a detailed history of British 
Cohnnbia, Ahmitoba, and the Northwest Territories, from their 
discovery to 1877, and a full history of each of the seven 
provinces of the Dominion, from 18G7 to 1878, and the history 
of the Dominion as a Avhole during the latter period, it will 
also give an account of all the institutions and industries of the 
country, an analysis of our system of government, of our edu- 
cational systems, etc. ; a sketch of our progress in literature, 
science, art, manufactures, and inventions, and about one 
thousand biographies of the distinguished men of the nation, 
past and present. 

7. The " Montreal Daily Herald," in a review of my previous 
history of Canada, on Nov. 2G, 1877, had this to say: "A few 
■weeks ago we drew the attention of the public to the merits of 
Mr. Tuttle's praiseworthy undertaking, and the completion of 
the first volume of his History of the Dominion fully Justifies 
the more than good opinion we then formed, upon the evidence 
of the advanced numbers of this highly important and Avell- 
cxecuted work. . . . The time Avhich Mr. Tuttlc has 
chosen for his Avork is an op[)ortunc one, and the manner in 
which he lias carried it out well justifies the idea he pro- 
poses at the outset, that it should be a ])opular history. To 
this end he has wisely avoided elaborate deduction, and has given 
a clear and readable presentation of the salient points, indicat- 
ing their bearing and results. His authorities arc numerous 
and well selected, the consequence being a very im[)artial 
statement of the much-vexed questions Avhich some epochs of 
our history afford, and herein especially he makes good his claim 
to popularity. The numerous quotations, from leading authors, 
throw the light of difterencc of opinion upon these questions, 
and give the i-eader sufficient scope to form an opinion of his 
own. In assuming the role of a compiler Mr. Tattle has 
chosen the only course that could result in a satisfactory history ; 
but ho has not thereby lost his claim to l)e regarded as a 
historian i)ropcr, for the satisfactory collation and arrangement 
of the mass of material from which ho litis had to select show a 
good deal of sound judgment, and no small al)ility on the [)art of 
our author, who has, however, had a good deal of experience in 
this way. as his other works attest. Writing for the gc^neral 
public is a totally different matter from writing for the his- 
torical student, and a comprehensiv(^ outline of the history of a 
nation is a difficult task to accomplish if conciseness and interest 
ai'o to bo both i)reserved, and the work, on the one hnnd, 



18 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

redeemed from l^ccoming merely the dry bones of annals, or, on 
the other, from being so overladen with incident and deduction 
as to become unwieldy. Mr. Tuttle has, in our opinion, ad- 
mirably hitolf the requirements of his professed object, and done 
a good service in bringing out such an eminently readable, 
accurate, and comprehensive history. . . . The chapter on 
the commerce and industry of New France affords much infor- 
mation on the causes of the inadequacy of the colony to resist its 
English neighbors to the end, and of the latter colonies a very 
good noti(;e is given in short compass. The history of Acadia, 
or Nova Scotia, is ]:)articuiarly full and accurate, and, in view 
of the evidence afforded by all the documents, our writer 
arrives at probably the truest conclusion concerning the tragic 
expulsion of the Acadians, when he defends the policy which 
necessitated it and condemns the manner in which it was carried 
out. The Jesuits receive the full share of attention which 
their great missionary work and self-sacrificing lives deserve ; 
and in dealing with the struggles between the ecclesiastical and 
temporal power the author displays great fairness, and pre- 
sents very vrell the questions which still live and have such an 
important influence in our own day. The fall of the French 
power and the subsequent oppression of the French until 1774 
are, wo arc glad to see, very fairly dealt with, allusion being 
made to their wonderful loyalty at the time of the revolt of the 
English colonies. The long struggle for parliamentary liberty 
and the history of the different provinces down to confedera- 
tion, arc handled with great tact, while much evidence is given 
concerning the numerous and stirring questions which have 
arisen in that time. Our author displays a little partisan 
feeling in alluding to some of the events during the civil war in 
the United States ; but this is almost the only occasion in wdiich 
he has departed from this self-imposed task. Without much 
ju'etension, his style is sufEciently easy and good. It has been 
impossible to verify his dates, but, from an examination of a few 
taken at i-andom, they appear to be correct, and the general tone 
of his work", bearing, as it does, the impress of careful examina- 
tion and accuracy, confirms our belief that in this, for a popular 
history, a minor matter after all, ho will be found exact. 
Some mistakes in names and terms are to be found, but they 
are so evidently faults in proof-reading rather than literary 
inaccuracies, that wo forbear to notice them, and we are quite 
inclined to allow the author the indulgence he claims on the 
score of the difficulty attending the correction of proofs in a 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 19 

work like this. Wc heartily recommend it, and wo hope that 
by its instrumentality a knowledge and appreciation of our 
history may be widely disseminated among those whom it most 
concerns, — the people of Canada." 

8. The single exception referred to came from the pen of an 
able writer, and it came with all the heat of anger. The pages- 
of ray book recorded his political life with such honesty, and 
yet with such dishonor to the man, that he could do nothing 
less than smite the object of his dislike ; but, Avith all the 
genius and power of his most scholarly pen, he could not 
demolish the records which he had made, and which had now, 
for the first time, passed irrevocably into history. Since that 
time the book has gone into every province of Canada, into 
every State of the Union, into France, England, Scotland, Ire- 
laud, and Australia ; and the second volume will soon follow it, 
handsomer, brighter, and better than the iirst. This criticism 
came from one of the nobility ! Great fault was found with the 
proof-reading, which I am prepared to admit Avas wretched, 
but the right honorable gentleman manifested his profession — 
the politician — most emphatically, when he insinuated that I 
was l)ut little known in Ontario and Quebec. It was a case 
bordering on a doubt as to the existence of any such person as 
myself. This the knighted gentleman declared to a friend of 
mine was intended for satire ! However, I make it a point to 
get some good out of most everything which comes in my way, 
and so in this case I have derived the benefit of receiving a 
higher estimation of my own work ; and received an impulse 
which has led me to Ayrite a short sketch of my own life, for the 
benefit of my right honorable critic. I trust this will be excused, 
since my name has become so familiar with many thousands Avho 
will, perhaps, never meet me personally. 

9. The author of this work Avas born at Wallace, Cum- 
berland County, N.S., on the 14th of March, 1848, just 
thirty years ago to-da}^ ! which may in some measure account 
for the free, off-hand style of this introduction ; for I supjiose 
one is expected to feel as jolly as possible on his birthdtiy. 
His father, Guy Tuttle, Avas the son of Stephen Tuttlo, Avho, 
among many other loyalists, preferred a home in Nova Scotia 
with an unbroken allegiance to the British CroAvn, to one in Xcav 
England Avithout the latter. Stephen Avas poor, and had a largo 
family, but managed to give each of his numerous children a 
farm, — for at that time land was cheap, — but aside from ths 
farms he left them only strong arms and the example of honest 



20 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



industry. When my father's farm was assigned to him, trees 
"were blazed to indicate the boundaries, and he made the lirst 
clearing with his own hands. This was cnhirgcd from year to 
year, until lie had made considcral)le improvement. He next 
went to Xcw Brunswick in search of a wife. I cannot tell Avhy 
,_,^ he Avcnt there, except 

that perhaps he was al- 
ways in favor of a union 
of the provinces. l:^o 
Guy and Jane Tuttlo 
settled in their new 
home in the Avoods, on 
"Wallace Bay. • Their 
worst enemies Avcrc the 
bears but Avhen the old 
ilint musket could bo 
induced to " go off," it 
generally proA'cd fat:d to 
the iuA'adcrs, for rjy 
father av:;s a good marks- 
m;ui. He continued to 
enlarge his '"clearings," 
year r.ftcr year, and to 
•r:usc sufficient grain, 
and vegetables, and 
stock, and to catch a sufficient quantity of lish {narpreaux) 
from t!ic bay, to render living ordinarily comf3rt:il)lo. 
Finally, about ten years after his marriage, Avhcn he had four 
small children, his home, Avith all its contents, Avas burned to 
the ground. This Avas no small discoura.geracnt, but ho pcr- 
eevcred. The neighbors Averc not plentiful, but their gener- 
osity made up for their lack in this respect. A ncAV houso 
was l)uilt, or commenced, soon sifter, and vras completed as cir- 
cumstances Avonld admit. It Avas a])out fifteen years before tho 
house and t!:c tvv'o barns, as indicated by the cn'^raA'ing on tho 
nc::t page, Avcre f.nishcd. My father Avcrhcd hard to raise his ci.K 
ch.ik^-ren. It Avas nearly tAvcnty years before he fully oA'crcamo 
the loss cf Ins house. J.Ieanwhilc my mother Avas net an idle 
spectavtor ; in her old-fashioned loom she SAvur.g the licaA'y latlio 
to and fro, and cast tho shuttle from right to left, and from lift 
to right, through many a long and Avearisomo year, AveaA'ir.g 
" homespun " cloth at the ra.te cf threepence a ya.rd. B::t, 
even at this Avrctched price, she earned many a pound, so that 




CHARLES R. TUTTLE. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



21 




1 VI 1 1 HOMl Ol til VI LI ■!) P Tl TI I I 



to-d:i}', conip;iriii;r her iiidiistiy with that of my father's, I can- 
not tell v.'hosc Avas the most fruitful. She has gone to a richer 
inheritance, beyond the toils of time I 

10. I Vv'as the fifth and last son. They named me Charles 
Kichard. An only sister, younger, died at the age of fourteen. 
In hoyliood I had the advantages, or disadvantages, of a very 
poor country school, the most A'ivid recollections of which to- 

day are asso- 

r^^^°~ ^ ^^^^^ ^ =^=^ ciated Vv'ith 

^^=-° ^^^k unmerciful 

~ llog'^ings, to 

which I had 
l)ecome so 
accustomed 
;is to look for 
thcra as a 
part of tho 
d:iily rou- 
tine. At tho 
ago of four- 
teen I askecl 

for my '' portion,"' and signified an intention of breaking away 
from home to find employment elsewhere. ]^.Iy portion was 
promptly granted in hard cash, and consisted of a cinglo 
"three and a penny hapeny piece." T/ith this I started 
for Amherst, "-oiu!? thirty miles on foot, and thenco twelvo 
miles to 2Iaccan, v/here, before the last shilling of my mheri- 
tance was expended, I found myself discharging the duties 
of a moderately lucrative situation in a coal mine, hundreds cf 
feet belovv^ the surface, wheeling coal through a l;)ng, d:u-li, v/ct, 
desolate, dangerous level. Occasionally 1 vras knocked over 
by a piece cf f.dling soapstonc ; but the afilictions of sucli an 
hour v/crc quickly di;-,pelled by a reali::ation cf the fact that I 
Avas earning a dollar a da.y. The mines Avere run on ciglit-l:our 
"shifts," atibrding considerable leisure, in which I Vv'as enabled 
to complete a course of ancient and modern history. At the end 
cf six months I had one hundred dollars, and took leave of my 
mincr-ecmrades. Investing about forty dollars in school-books, 
and expending tlic balance for tuition, I set out in right good 
carr.cst f;:r an education. My advantages from that hour vrero 
good. There had been nn educational awakening aJl over tho 
province. The Hon. Dr. Charles Tupper had just given us his 
admirable school s}'ctcm, and, through the ambition thereby 



22 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

inspired, pupils were blessed with p^ood books, good apparatus, 
and excellent teachers. I soon graduated into a school-teacher, 
with the most flattering testimonials of Inspector Christie. 
Years of teaching followed, two of which were spent at Went- 
worth, where among my pupils I numbered Henry IJecd and 
Charles AV. Swallow. The former passed from my school to 
school teaching, in which high calling, during the past ten years, 
he has occupied a foremost position in that county ; the latter 
has already taken, at least, a medium stand among the 
Methodist preachers of the province, and others of my pupils 
have risen to positions of usefulness. At the age of twenty I 
was married to Miss Margaret Elenor, daughter of the late 
James Bigney, Senior, of Wentworth, and soon after set out for 
the United States. I reached Boston in 18G8, with less than 
one hundred dollars. By this time, however, through a course 
of study pursued while teaching, I possessed a good English 
education, and was particularly well acquainted with ancient 
and modern history, ff)r which I have always had a keen relish. 
From the position of reporter for the daily press I rose to that 
of city editor, then to that of managing editor, and for a period 
of about three years was connected with some of the leading 
dailies of New England and the West. I was managing editor 
of the Boston "Daily News" for a considerable time, closing my 
engagement during the year celebrated by Patrick Gilmore's 
Great Peace Jubilee. 

11. From the newspaper press I went into book writing and 
publishing, my lirst ell'ort being a History of the State of Michi- 
gan, of which about thirty thousand copies were sold. My 
works, so far, are as follows : — 

I. — History of the State of Michigan. 
n. — History of the State of Indiana. 
III. — History of the Border "Wars of Two Cen- 
turies. 
IV. — History of the State of Wisconsin. 
V. — History of the State of Iowa. 
VI. — History of the State of Kansas. 
VII. — History of the Countries of America. 
VIII. — History of the North-west. 
IX. — Popular History of the Dominion of Canada, 
WITH Art Illustrations. 

X. ENCYCLOPiEDIA OF UNIVERSAL HiSTORY AND USE- 
FUL Knowledge. 
XL — A Short History of the Dominion of Canada. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 23 
NO VELS. 

XII. — That Young Man. 
XIII. — The Boss Devil of America. 

12. In religious faith I am a Methodist, with some strong 
affections for the mother-church, — the Church of England. I 
have been a member of the former body for several years, and 
was made a local preacher by the Northern Indiana M. E. 
Conference in 1874, and have occasionally preached in c(m- 
iiection with my literary pursuits. I have made a somewhat 
careful study of the political institutions of Canada and the 
United States, and hope to make the information thus acquired 
of use to my country in time to come. I am both a native and 
n citizen of the Dominion of Canada. At the proper age I was 
enrolled in the militia, and took the oath of allegiance to the 
crown and kingdom of Great Britain, under the late Col. Pinco, 
at Pugwash. That allegiance has ever been maintained, and a 
long contact with United States institutions and its Kepublican 
form of government has served to strengthen it. AVhatever 
may have been the mistakes of my life, 1 am to-day, and ever 
have been, devoted in my loyalty to Canada and to Canada's 
Sovereign. That loyalty has never been disguised while 
abroad, and the temporary inconveniences Avhich have resulted 
are not worthy to be compared \\ ith the advantages of such a 
citizenship as that to which I was born. 



CHAPTER II. 

INTRODUCTORY REMARKS {continued). 

THE PLACE GAINED I5Y CANADA AND CANADIANS IN THE ESTIMATION OP TUB 

WOULD— THE CHURCHES — POPULATION AND NATIONALITTES OUJECTIONABLB 

EMIGRATION ROMANISM. 

I. I AM glad, to-day, to be able to commence the second 
chapter of my " Short History of the Dominion of Canada,'' by 
sa3'ing that no one belonging to the British- American provinces, 
and ti-avelling or living abroad, in any country, has a reason 
to disguise or conceal his nativity. It is no small recommenda- 
tion in the United States to be able to say, "I am a native of 



24 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

the Dominion of Canada," and particularly is this true of those 
Avho can chiim Nova Scotia as their birthplace. Jt is a rcniark- 
al)le fact that Nova Scotia is iinown the workl over, and known 
favorahl}^ This is due, in the tirst place, to the fact that Nova 
Scotia merchant-ships have visited every port of the ulobe ; in 
the second j)lace, because the name of that province is prom- 
inently connected with the history of the past three centuries ; 
and, perhaps, mainly, because of the skill and valor of her 
brave men \\ho have distin<2:uished themselves in all industries 
and professions, and all nations, and upon every important 
battle-tield, since the beginning of the seventeenth century. 
AN'hat is true of my own })rovince in particular is true, gener- 
ally, of the whole of Canada. Canadians have won a })roud 
jxjsition among the peoples of the earth. Can;ida holds an 
enviable position in the civilization of the nineteenth century. 
"Where, then, is that Canadian whose loyalty is not becoming 
more intensified? Show me the annexationist, and 1 will show 
you the fanatic ! 

2. Perhaps I may be allowed to repeat substantially hero 
some remarks uttered in the introduction to my i)revious his- 
tory, especially in I'eferencc to the place which Canada and 
Canadians have won in the estimation of mankind, and with 
regard to the internal developments of the country. There is 
a very large and rapidly increasing element of the populali(Mi 
of Canada Avhich has no superior in any nation of the globe. It 
may be sadly true that the religious orders and institutions in 
some of the provinces have exercised a fatal influence in mould- 
ing a poor typt! of manhood, but this is being overcome as ra|)idly 
as could be expected. Howevei", the major part of the church 
exercises a most Avholesome influence in this respect, and to 
that salutary force Canada is greatly indebted. The Roman 
Catholic, the Presbyterian, the Protestant Episcopal, and the 
]\ieth()dist are the four leading religious denominations of the 
D(miinion. There are about l,5"uO,000 Catholics, 448,000 
Presbyterians, 41)0,000 Episcopalians, and 375,000 Methodists. 
The latter is the growing, aggressive church, and is destined 
to become the ruling clement in Canida, as it now is in the 
United States. About 1,082,948 of the people are of French 
origin. These, for the most part, are the least progressive of 
the whole population, which is due to the ignorance, ])i'iest- 
imposed, which has clouded their prospects. The chui'ch is- 
gradually losing its power over them, and the rising and suc- 
ceeding generations of this people arc destined to freedom and 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 25 

progress. About 70G,3G > of the inh:il)it mts are of English 
origin. Tliosc of Irish origin number 846,141, and those of 
Scotch, 5.30,000. There arc, also, about 232,(313 Germans. 
The most encouraging fact is that S3 in every 100 of the whole 
population are native-born Canadians. 

;>, The material and educational progress of the dominion 
during the past twcntj^-tive years has been rapid and substantial. 
Within the last three years the great depression of all kinds of 
business which has characterized the United States has been 
very largely shared in by Canada. Many of the best commer- 
cial houses have failed, while others are tiding over tho crisi.s 
with great difficulty. But these hard times present no great 
cause for alarm, especially from a national stand-point. Tlio 
oll'spring of reckless investments and wicked extravagances, 
which have so shamefully characterized both government and 
people, they will disappear with a return to honesty and econ- 
omy. All America needed a lesson in this resi)ect, and there 
was no surer way to impress the truth upon the heart and mind 
than the reverses through whicli thousands arc now passing. 
If only the lesson shall be remembered, then may the nation 
cease to mourn the dulness of trade at an early day ! 

4. One of the greatest evils characteristic of the Canadian 
people is the ill-gotten disposition of the young of both sexes 
to emigrate to the United States. The continuance of this prac- 
tice is supported by a delusion. There is not a young mm or 
woman who has emigrated to the United States within the la.st 
five years who will not testify to-day that, Avith the same energy 
and perseverance, he or she could accomplish more at home 
than in that country to which they have gone, hoping to better 
their condition in life. One of the unaccountable circumstances 
of the ])resent decade, if not one of the most difficult problems 
to solve, is the fact that the young people of Canada are willing 
to work harder and suffer greater privations in the United 
States for comforts which may be obtained at home with less 
effort and at less cost. But this will not always last. It must 
not continue louger. Some voice should be raised ; some 
industry put in active operation, to put an end to this miser- 
able practice. At present, and in this connection, I can do no 
more than raise my voice, and declare to all young i)e()ple in 
the Dominion that our ov/n country presents better and more 
luci'ative tields of industry than can be found in the adjoining 
liepublic, where to-day nearly 100,000 native British-Ameri- 
cans are languishing in the overcrowded trades and professions. 



26 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

111 tbo name of Gotl, my country, and your best interests, I l)id 
you, beseech you, stay at home! or if you muM make :i change 
of location, let it be in the direction of that fertile north-west, 
out of which the future greatest provinces of the Dominion 
are destined to rise in all the glory of agricultural magniti- 
cciice ! 

5. Canada needs commercial independence, especially in 
the adjustment of her traffic regulations with the United States. 
Since confederation, Canada's business transactions with the 
United States, in the general volume of international com- 
merce, has been entirely one-sided, — to the loss of our own 
merchants and people. This was not fully recognized, though 
it was all the same doing its work of ruin, until our money no 
longer commanded any considerable premium over greenbacks, 
but the last twelve months have convinced every merchant in 
Canada making purchases with the United States for importa- 
tion, that in the recent treaty with that country England pur- 
chased her own desires at the expense of Canada. But these 
things will be remedied when a iirmer and more intellectual 
statesmanship shall distinguish the deliberations of our gov- 
ernment. 

G. The vexed question of Romanism, as it affects the 
present, and is likely to affect the future, of Canada, is of 
course a difficult one, and one in Avhich the historian must deal 
with great delicacy. Personally I am not disposed to malign 
lioman Catholics or Catholic institutions, and I regard as 
Protestant fanaticism those uncharitable and no less unintelli- 
gent religious terms which have been applied to the Roman 
Church, such as Anti-Christ, etc. Romanism has wrought, and 
is still achieving, a wonderful Avork, in the hands of an all-wise 
Ruler, for the civilization of the race. That in some countries 
it presents the objectional)le spectacle of oppressive j)riest- 
craft, and in others that of an obstruction to the advancement 
of popular education, is not a sufficient ground for unqualilied 
condenmation. There is more than one nation of the earth to- 
day, which is yet unprepared to throw off", with safety, the 
restraints of Romanism, unless such can be, at the same time, 
brought under the protection of those political institutions so 
grandly characteristic of Anglo-Saxon civilization. With the 
present political construction of the map of the world Roman- 
ism is indispensable, and will never be abolished except with 
the most radical changes in that map ; and when those changes 
will have come, — and they must certainly come, — it will not 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 27 

then be true, that, as a whole, Romanism shall have been a 
curse rather than a blessing to the world. 

It is difficult for many people in these advanced days to com- 
prehend the fact that some of the oldest and most unfashionable 
agricultural implements \Yerc once useful, and served a good 
purpose. My father owned a hoc years ago, as long ago as I 
can remember; it was a most unwieldy affair, made in one of 
his unskilful attempts at blacksmithing, from a castaway oven- 
lid. This was anterior to the " Yankee hoe," which found its 
way into the provincial markets some twenty years ago, and 
which, as also "Yankee pitchforks," and kindred implements, 
succeeded those of the home-made pattern. In time, my 
father's hoe, that must have weighed about live or six ])ounds, 
was thrown aside, and the light Yankee article substituted. 
Some ten or twelve years later, when we were making an 
excavation for the foundation of a new barn, this old and for- 
gotten hoe was dug up ; but no one recognized it until some three 
years after, when a peculiar accident caused its identification. 
It was difficult at that time, because this castaway relic was no 
longer useful, to realize that it ever had been; but my father 
was present to testify that it had served him more years and 
under more trying circumstances than any other hoe he had 
possessed. Xow, this illustration is not more simple than 
forcible. What is true concerning improvement in implements 
is, in one sense, true of institutions. Catholicism is the old, 
burdensome, tax-imposing implement, Avhich, in the hands of 
God, first rooted out the choking briers that were clustering, 
in united oppression, around the young phmt of Christianity. 
It can hardly be doubted that so imperfect an implement has, 
on the one hand, compromised with the evils it sought to over- 
come, and, on the other, trampled and bruised the fruit it 
attempted to cultivate. The only point in which my illustra- 
tion is lame — and herein it teaches an important lesson — is 
that but one cause prevents the improved instrumentality from 
supplanting the old, burdensome one, and that is a political 
cause. We seek to delay its removal, that the struggle may 
be a bloodless one, and in this, toleration is one of the best 
evidences of Protestant wisdom, — nay, more, an evidence 
that Protestantism is of God. Nor l)y this do I wish to be 
understood as saying other than that Protestantism is more 
than a grand improvement on the Roman forms of Christianity ; 
and, holding this, I affirm, also, that there is no ground which 
can justify, in the sight of Heaven, a persecution of one of 



28 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

these l)i'anchcs of the church by the other. Moreover, I can 
have no sympathy "with tlic enthusiasts on either side, Avho 
oppress their rcli^^ious opponents, under the pretext of any 
8crii)tural authority. For my own part, I know too nnich of 
history to be led into the dchision that cither Romanism or 
Protestantism will ever be subjugated or driven from tho 
W(n-ld by oppression or persecution. Such a course ever has 
and ever will develop tho power and promote the growth of 
any institution founded in truth, and 1 can see how, j)ursuaiit 
to this method, a continuance of the old feuds between thcso 
great divisions of the church can have no result so surely to 
be depended upon as the perpetuation of each other. If the 
Protestant really believes in the superior excellence of his form 
of Christianity, as compared with the old lloman forms, and 
can manage to add an unbiased intelligence, with an unprej- 
udiced knowledge of history to this faith, it Avill produce in 
him the greatest toleration of Romanism. Indeed, it Avill 
make him oppose it only in that wherein it is at grievous 
fault, and to encourage it in all things wherein it promises to 
uplift and bless its votaries. 

7. Could Romanism throw off its bigotry, and suppress such 
of its forms and ceremonies as should have been laid away in 
the grave of that empire in which they had their rise ; could 
the old papal church rise to the reforms which it must experi- 
ence to keep pace with the march of mankind ; nay, would the 
church but embody in its composition, and teach among tho 
masses of its comnmnicants, those principles of i)opular educa- 
tion and independent thought which she is compelled to tolerate 
among the higher classes, where wealth and education aboun I, 
I see no reason why the followers of St. Peter and St. .lohn 
might not yet be reconciled and united in a bond of the warm- 
est, purest union. It is just like Christianity to accomplish 
such a result as this, and in such an event there Avould bo 
nothing to justify taking the keys from St. Peters successor, 
so long as the apostolic succession of St. John was entrusted 
with the records, as heretofore. But we shall have no signs to 
indicate the cominsr of these thin<2:s until in one or in both 
branches of the church, a few great men shall be raised up, 
broad as humanity in their sympathies, and deep as the prob- 
lem to be solved in their wisdom, — men who shall strive to 
make the marching song of the ages accord with the pulsations 
of God's will, and who shall interpret that will by an untram- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 29 



melled inspiration. Patient hope will not die until thcso 
things be ! 

8. iUit to the historical side of the question. There is 
nothing in the records to alarm Protestants in Canada, or any- 
where else, with the possible cxce[)tioii of England, but mncli 
to enforce upon the attention of Romanists the needs of sub- 
scribing to the relief of a waning canse. V\^c must now 
tolerate a few statistics, but these will not be considered dry in 
n subject such as this. There are in the world to-day, accord- 
ing to certain well-authenticated estimates, about 1, 400, OUU, 01)1) 
inhabitants; of these al)out 200,000,000 are Pomanisls, and 
10!). 00 ),000 Protestants. Previous to the lleformation the 
swny of R.)ma!iism was almost universal, but in three and a 
half ceuMiries Protestantism has gathered to its standard half as 
many as now adhere to the Pope. The increase of Protestant- 
ism lias been at the rate of about 30,000,000 a century, and 
tiiat of Romanism, during the same period, about half th;it rate. 
The reader may follow out this ratio with his own m ithsm itical 
genius. But, to bo a little more spocilic, there, is prob.ii)ly no 
country to-day which presents such encouraging signs for Ro- 
manists as in Old England. Romanism his been giiniu" in 
England during the past thirty years, not only with the masses, 
but in the higiiar walks of society. Many of hor converts aro 
fellows of colleges, ministers of the Church of En<Tland, meni- 
l)ers of the learned professions, and of elevated rank, ii.it 
this increase of Papists in England is not wholly due to conver- 
sions from Protestantism ; and this explanation is made [)Iain in 
the light of the fact that lOngland has been colonized by Catho- 
lics from Ireland, to a considerable extent. But place the case 
in the most favorable light to Protestants, and yet En^^land 
presents a pro'dem in this respect. However, England is an 
exception to the whole world, while in the Dominion of Canada 
we have, in less than a century, reversed the status from live 
Catholics to one Protestant, to that of three Protestants for one 
Catholic. 

l). Romanists are not asleep to the signs of the times, but 
arc taking the most active measures to perpetuate their doc- 
trines in all parts of the world. In this effort no changes what- 
ever are made, even in the most objectionable forms of the 
church; but it is sought to continue and exact obedience to 
the old ones in various ways, but in none more cmphaticaily 
Hum among the children of their own adherents and of those 
of Protestants, who, because of various misfortunes, fall into 



30 



IIISTOEY OF DOMIXIOX OF CANADA, 



their hands. This is particularly characteristic of Roraanistic 
measures iu the Dotniuion of Canada and the United States, 
where, in the different series of illustrated school and 
Sunday school books, a recent departure in Koman Catholic lit- 
erature, — graphic pictures of priests, saints, and Papal cer- 
cmouies arc sot forth. The four different series of Catholic 
school-liooks -which I have examined, are thoroughly Papal, and 
profusely filled with legends of the saints, and j)ictures of wor- 
ship before crucifixes and images. One scries of seven books, 
of United States origin, is for use by the " Sisters of Charity ; " 
the " Christian Brothers' Scries of Peaders " is for male schools. 
This distinction is obvious. Another scries is compiled by 
"a member of the Holy Cross." Now, I am writing a book 
intended alike for Catholic and Protestant readers, and must 
pause here to intimate that no one sentence is here "written 
with a desire to offend Catholics; and, in giving the following 
sketches and illustrations from these school-books, I do no 
more than is demanded of me in the strict line of dut}' ; no 
more than any Catholic historian "would be compelled to do, 
and which ho w^ould have aright to do, concerning Protestants ; 
and, assuming that there is nothing in these books of instruc- 
tion for the youth of which Catholics have reason to bo 
ashamed, I cannot think m3'sclf giving offence by instructing 
Protestants in wiiat is taking place around them in all churches. 
Hence I give a few specimens of lessons and illustrative cuts, 
found in these readers, to show "what kind of an education 

children secure in Poman Catholic 
schools. Beginning with the "First 
Reader," page 49, we have the folio w- 
insT cut and lesson : — 




'* It is bed-time. See ! little 
Mary is saying- her ]:)rayers be- 
fore she goes to bed. The 
crucifix bangs above her bed; 
when little Mary looks at it, 
she thinks of Clod's love that 
made him die on the cross to 
save all little children." 



The reader will see that this picture is well calculated to 
strike the imagination of a child. It is carefully taught that 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



the right Avay to pray is gazing at a crucitix. On 
the same little book we have this cut and lesson : — 

" Here is a lit- 
tle orphan-girl 
going to rest. 
JShould I call 
her an orphan? 
See! she is 
kneeling before 



pa^ 



.1 of 




a statue of Our 
Blessed Mother. 
She is asking 
her to be her ^ 
mother now and ^3 
forever." 

"VVc have in this illustration the crucifix over the heel, and the 
imago of tlio Virgin Mary, with the girl kneeling before it ; and 
then the prayer, "She is asking her to lie her mother, now and 
forever,"' is calculated to teach all pupils who use the book to 
kneel before an image of Mary, and to pray and trust in her. 
It is not for me to condemn, only to chronicle this, that, even 
centuries from the present time, those who succeed us may be 
informed concerning these things. I write for the instruction 
of future generations. Let us take another lesson from the 
same " Header " : — 

" AYe are very sad 
when our friends die, 
and it is painful to see 
those we love laid in the 
cold ground,butitisvery 
sweet to think about 
the death of those who 
die as Alice did. She 
could not remember the 
time she had not prayed j|jj| 
to Our Blesse'd Mother, 
and she was so devoted 
to her that when taken 
very sick she had no j 
fear of death . . . She 




DEATH OF LITTLE ALICE. 



32 



iiioTOiri 07 ])o:.iixio:r oir ca::ada, 



had a dear little altar at her hedrside, ^v'l'di a criicinx 
given her by her kind confessor, Father Iveenan, and 
a pretty Avhite statue of the Blessed A'irgin upon it. 

One evening: at sunset dear little Alice 

had just hnishcd saying her beads, when she a;;ked 
her mother to change her pillow and smooth her hair. 

. . Please send for Father Iveenan 

She sa\Y Our Holy Mother with the Divine Child 
in her arms, waiting to take her home. The ]:)rie3t 
came and little Alice received Our Blessed Lord into 
her heart, and was anointed; then she fell asleep in 
death like a lily closing its petals at nightfall." 

I -will detain the reader with but a single lesson more, 
taken from thj " Second Header,"' entitled " The Coutesjiou " : — 



sion, I 
I once 



"1. Ido not know 
why it is that so 
many little girls and 
boys have a horror 
of gcing to the con- 
fession. Surely they 
must forget that 
confession is like a 
]dank thrown into 
the sea to the drown-' 
\\ ing mariner, that 
,' is the only means 
^\ whereby we can ob- 
I'l tain forgiveness of 
' sin committed after 
ba])tism, 

"2. If our dear 
Lord and Saviour 
had not established 
this sacrament in 
his great compas- 
do not know what we should have done. Now, 
heard of a little girl who was so dreadfully afraid 




ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 33 

of going to confession that she quite fainted away when 
she found herself in the confessional. On the pre- 
ceding page is a i:)icture of her, with her sister by her 
side trying to encourage her. 

" 3. Do you know why that little girl was so horri- 
fied at the thought of confession? Why, because her 
father and mother had been so negligent of their duty 
as to allow their children to grow up to the age of ten 
or twelve years before they sent them to confession. 
If they had been sent earlier they would have had no 
such dread of confessing their sins. 

"4. If you ask one of the silly little people why they 
are so much afraid, the answer will perhaps be, "^ Why, 
how can I tell my sins to the priest? AVho knows but 
he may speak of them to somebody else?' Foolish 
little girl or boy, have you never heard that one of 
the saints suffered martyrdom rather than reveal what 
had been told him in confession? 

"5. A wicked emperor, who suspected his wife of a 
great crime, wished to have her confessor tell whether 
she was guilty or not, but the saint replied that no 
priest could speak to any one of what was told him in 
confession, and that he could not even tell whether the 
empress was innocent or not. 

" 6. Hearing this, the tyrant was so enraged that 
he ordered the holy man to be thrown into the Muldaw, 
which was the name of the sea near his palace. It was 
done accordingly, and the good St. John Nepomucine 
went cheerfully to death rather than disclose the secret 
of confession. And so it is to-day. The ministers 
appointed l)y Jesus Christ to reconcile the sinner with 
him are never known, never have been known, to tell 
what they hear in confession." 



34 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



CHAPTER III. 

THE NORSE DISCOVERIES. 

1. Turning now to the narrative before me, it is all im- 
portant that I should insert in this place a chapter or two on 
the discovery of America, and more particularly of that part of 
America included within the boundaries of British America. 
In my unabridged history of the Dominion of Canada I have 
given, at considerable length, an account of the discovery of 
America by the Norsemen, the Spaniards, the French, and the 
English. In this work it will be expedient only to note some 
of the principal landmarks in the same narrative. Some time 
in 1877, a Toronto (Ont.) journal, in reviewing some of the 
earlier numbers of my previous history, indulged in some remarks 
intended to be humorous, criticising my account of the Norse 
discovery of America, and went so far as to volunteer the in- 
formation to its readers that the author of the history of Canada 
had mistaken fable for fact. In this instance, however, the 
editor, and not the author, was in error. There is still a vast 
amount of scepticism, especially in the United States and 
Canada, concerning Norse literature, and many people of con- 
siderable scholarship fall into the mistake of regarding the tales 
of the sagas as mere traditions, or fables, unworthy the least 
degree of confidence ; but light is rapidly breaking over this 
problem, and beneath its generating power Norse literature is 
growing some grand historical fruit, and none, perhaps, more 
interesting than that regarding the discovery of America. 

2. A few people, mostly of Norse extraction, rush to the 
extreme fallacy of claiming the authenticity of the early Ameri- 
can explorations by the Norsemen to mean something detri- 
mental to the glory of Columbus. This idea should not bo 
tolerated for a single minute. There is nothing in all the Norse 
expeditions, granting even all that the most enthusiastic Nor- 
wegian claims for them, which can take one jewel from the 
bright crown of Columbus. The only connection they can pos- 
sibly have with the great explorer is to indicate that knowl- 
edge, industriously and honorably acquired, rather than in- 
tuition or revelation, guided him in his westward voyages of 
discovery. For my own part, I believe that recent historical 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 35 

research has sufficiently shown Columbus to have been in pos- 
session of what knowledge the Norsemen could give him before 
his final resolution to explore the West was unalterably 
formed. 

8. The Norsemen were the descendants of a branch of the 
Gothic race that in early times emigrated from Asia and 
travelled north-west and settled in what is now the central 
part of Norway. They were, in early times, an exceedingly 
bold and independent people. The rulers of England are de- 
scendants of the Norsemen. At an early date they became re- 
nowned in all Europe for their feats of navigation ; but their 
enterprising voyages were by no means confined to Europe. 
In the year 860 they discovered and settled in Iceland, estab- 
lishing on this island a Republic which flourished about four 
hundred years. Not long after the settlement of the island it 
contained a population of 50,000, and became the key, in con- 
nection with Greenland, to unlock the secret of the western 
continents. These bold Norsemen, pushing their course west- 
ward, settled in Greenland, and, in an adventurous voyage, 
sighted the shores of America. 

4. But let us glance at the chain of events, link after link, 
in this account of the discovery of America by the Norsemen. 
In the year 98G, a bold adventurer, named Erik the Red, 
moved from Iceland to Greenland, that wretched laud which he 
had miscalled by that name, to induce emigration. He was 
accompanied by numerous friends, among whom was an Ice- 
lander, named Herjulf ; the latter had a son named Bjarne, a 
man of great enterprise, the owner of a ship, and a large for- 
tune. He was on a voyage to Norway when his father moved 
to Greenland, and on his return he resolved to follow him with- 
out unloading his ship. His men were eager to accompany 
him ; so away they sailed and soon lost sight of Iceland. But 
the wind failed. Subsequently a north wind and a heavy fog 
set in, and they knew not whither they were drifting. This 
condition of the weather continued many days, during which 
the alarmed crew drifted far out into the sea, to the south-west. 
At length the sun appeared, the storm subsided, and, lo ! in the 
horizon, not many leagues distant, they beheld the well-defined 
outlines of an unknown land, the continent of North America. 
Approaching nearer, they saw that it was without mountains, 
and covered with wood. Bjarne was satisfied that this was not 
Greenland, he knew that he was too far to the south ; so ho left 
tho land on the larboard side, and sailed northward for two 



36 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

days, when again he discovered land. But still this was not 
Greenland ; turning the ship from the land, they continued 
their course northward for three days. Then land w:is seen for 
the third time ; but Bjarne refused to go ashore, knowing that it 
did not answer to the description of Greenland. So they sailed 
on, and after four days they reached Greenland, landing not far 
from where the father of the unfortunate navigator had settled. 
It is supposed that the land Bjarne saw on this involuntary voy- 
age in 986 was, first, the present Nantucket, one degree south 
of Boston ; second, Nova Scotia ; and, third, Newfoundland. 

5. Bjarne was censured, by his countrymen of Norway, for 
not going ashore and exploring the land to which the tempest 
had driven him. Nevertheless, the imperfect description which 
he was enabled to give seemed to arouse the mind of Lief Erik- 
son, who determined to make farther investigation. He bought 
Bjarnc's ship, set sail with thirty-live men, and found the lands 
just as they had been described to him, A.D. 1000. Erikson 
landed his crew in Hellerland (Newfoundland), and in Mark- 
land (Nova Scotia) , explored these countries somewhat, named 
them, and then proceeded to discover the land which had lirst 
been seen by Bjarne. After two days they came to land, and 
sailed into the sound, which was so shallow at ebb tide that 
their ship grounded. But so much did they desire to reach 
the land, that they sprang into the water and waded ashore at a 
place, as the translation has it, " where a river flows out of a 
lake." This lake is undoubtedly Mount Hope Bay. At flood 
tide they brought their ship into the bay, and cast anchor. 
Taking their skin cots ashore they soon raised tents, after 
which a council was held, at which they resolved to remain 
through the winter, and build a large house ; they obtained an 
abundance of fine salmon, both in the river and in the bay. 
From the account of this expedition, preserved by the Norse- 
men, we learn that they quartered in latitude 41^^ 24% which 
places their tents at the mouth of Fall River, Massachusetts. 
Lief Erikson called the country Vinland. 

6. Early in the spring of 1001, Lief Erikson returned to 
Greenland, where the news of his discovery created great 
commotion. Thorwald, Lief's brother, desired to explore the 
land more extensively, and solicited his brother's ship for that 
purpose, which the generous Lief readily granted. Another 
expedition was accordingly fitted out in the year 1002, by 
Thorwald Erikson, who sailed to Vinland, where he remained 
three years, and where he fell in a battle with the Indians, 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



37 



pierced by an arrow. 



Averc raised above his grave. 



He was buried in Vinland, and two crosses 
The exact location of this grave 
could not noAV be ascertained, but it is 
indeed hallowed ground that contains 
the dust of the lirst European who 
died and was buried in America. In 
1831 there was discovered, in the vicin- 
ity of Fall River, Massachusetts, a 
skeleton iu armor, and many of the cir- 
cumstances connected with it arc such 
as to IciiYQ room for, at least, the con- 
jecture that it was the skeleton of this 
very Thorwald Erikson. This skeleton 
was the subject of much learned dis- 
cussion at the time, and the American 
poet, Longfellow, wrote a poem on it, tower ax newporx. 

years after, beginning with these words, — 




"Speak! Speak! thou fearful guest.' 



The poem makes the skeleton tell the story of his adventures 
as a viking, sing of the pine forests of Norway, of the voyage 
across the Atlantic, and of the discovery of America. The 
tower delineated by the above cut is the famous Newport tower, in 
Rhode Island, which was undoubtedly built hy the Norsemen. 
When the Norsemen had buried their chief and leader, Thor- 
Avald, they returned to their tents at the bay, loaded their ships 
with the products of the laud, and returned to Greenland in 
1005. 

7. Next we are told by the Sagas, that Thorstein, the 
youngest son of Erik the Red, resolved to visit Vinland, and 
procure the body of his brother Thorwald. " He was married, " 
say the Sagas, " to Gudrid, a "woman remarkable for her beauty, 
her dignity, her prudence, and her good discourse. Thorstein 
fitted out a vessel, manned it with twenty-five men, selected 
for their strength and stature, besides himself and Gudrid." 
This party put to sea, and were soon far from Greenland ; but, 
being overtaken by a storm, they were tossed and driven, they 
knew not whither, for many a day. Finally they reached land, 
which proved to be the western coast of their own Greenland. 
Here Thorstein and several of his men died, and Gudrid 
returned to Eriksfjord. 

8. Thorfinn Karlsefne was the most distinguished explorer 



38 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

of Vinland, Being a wealthy and influential man, and de- 
scended from the most famous families of the North, he was 
able to command the means necessary to a successful expedi- 
tion. In the fall of 10.)6 he emigrated from Norway to 
Greenland, with two ships, where, at Eriksfjord, he met Lief 
Erikson, who offered the Norse navigator the hospitalities of 
Brattahlid during winter. Thorfinn soon began to treat with 
Lief for the hand of Gudrid, Lief being the person to whom 
the risrht of betrothment belon2:ed. In the course of the winter 
they were married with due ceremony. Gudrid, full of bold 
resolve, urged her second husband to undertake an expedition 
to Vinland, in which her first husband had perished. Accord- 
ingly, in the spring of 1007, Thortinn, accompanied by his 
wife, sailed to Vinland, where he remained three years. The 
Sagas emphasize the fact that Gudrid was the heart and soul 
of this expedition, and represent her as addressing her husband 
in the following language : "I wonder that you, Thorfinn, with 
good ships and many stout men, and plenty of means, should 
choose to remain in this barren spot instead of searching out 
the famous Vinland and making a settlement there. Just think 
what a splendid country it must be, and what a desirable 
change for us, — thick and leafy woods, hke those of old Nor- 
way, instead of these rugged cliffs and snow-clad hills ; fields 
of waving grass and rye, instead of moss-covered rocks and 
sandy soil ; trees large enough to build houses and ships, in- 
stead of willow-bushes, that are fit for nothing except to save 
our cattle from starvation when the hay crop runs out ; besides, 
longer sunshine in winter, and more genial warmth all the year 
round, instead of howling winds and ice and snow. Truly, I 
think this country has been wofully misnamed when they called 
it Greenland." 

9. This expedition was on a much larger scale than any 
that preceded it. It is plain that Lief and Thorwald and 
Thorstein had not intended to make their permanent abode in 
Vinland. They brought neither women nor flocks nor herds 
with them. Karsefne and Gudrid, on the other hand, came 
forth with all the equipage for colonization. The party con- 
sistefl of one hundred and fifty-one men and seven women. A 
number of cattle and sheep were also brought to America with 
this expedition. They all arrived safe, and remained in Vin- 
land three years, when the hostilities of the Indians compelled 
them to give up the colony. During his three years' stay in 
Vinland Thorfinn was not inactive. On the contrary, he 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 39 

conducted an extensive and profitable trade with the Indians, 
and began to develop the resources of the country. The 
year after their arrival a son was born to Thorfinn and 
Gudrid, who was named Snorre Thorfinnson. He was l)orn 
within the limits of the present State of Massachusetts, at 
Buzzard's Bay, in the year 1008, and was the first mau of 
European blood of whose birth in America we have any record. 

10. The Sagas give elaborate accounts of other expeditions 
by the Norsemen to Vinland. There is one by Freydis, 1011, 
and in the year 1121 the Bishop, Erik Upsi, came as a mission- 
ary to the colony. There are also accounts of expeditions by 
the Norsemen to Great Irland (North and South Carolina, 
Georgia, and Florida). The last-mentioned was in 1347, but 
this was in the time of the Black Plao'uc, which raijed throuofh- 
out Europe with unrelenting fury from 1347 to 1351, and also 
reached Iceland, Greenland, and Vinland, and cut off com- 
munication between these countries. This plague reduced the 
population of Norway alone from two miUions to three hundred 
thousand ; and this fact gives us some idea of the terrible rav- 
ages of this fearful epidemic, which may be regarded as the 
immediate cause for the withdrawal of Norse settlements in 
America. 

11. We may now trace the chain of circumstances which 
connects the discovery of America by the Norsemen with that by 
Christopher Columbus, which is more recent and better known. 
In Washington Irving's biography of Columbus we learn from 
a letter, written by the explorer himself, that while the design of 
attempting the discovery in the ^Vest was maturing in his mind 
he made a voyage to Iceland. This was iiitha spring of 147 7 . 
We have the right to assume that in his conversations with the 
Bishop and other learned men of Iceland, he must have been 
informed of the discovery of Vinland. It will be remembered 
that this visit of Columbus to Iceland was only fifteen years 
before he discovered America, and only one hundred and thirty 
years after the last Norse expedition to Vinland. Another 
link is furnished in the fact that Gudrid, the wife of Thorfinn, 
after the death of the latter, made a pilgrimage to Kome, where 
she was well received, and where she certainly related the story 
of her transatlantic voyage to Vinland, and her three years' 
residence there. Rome paid much attention to geographical 
discoveries, and took pains to collect all new charts that were 
brought there. They must have heard of Vinland before, but 
Gudrid brought them personal evidence. Again, that Vinland 



40 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

was actually known to the Vatican is manifest by the fact that 
Pope Pascal II., in the year 1112, appointed Erik Upsi, Bishop 
of Iceland, Greenland, and Vinland, and this same Bishop 
visited the latter place in 1121. It should, of course, be borne 
in mind that Columbus lived in an age of discovery ; England, 
France, Portugal, and Spain were vying with each other in 
their discoveries. Hence it would be astonishing to believe 
that Columbus, in the midst of these evidences, with his nautical 
knowledge, did not hear of America years before his ship left 
Palos. YV'^e have also a remarkable record of the early discovery 
of America by the Norsemen, in the writings of Adam of Bre- 
men. He visited Denmark, and on his return home ho wrote a 
book " On the Propagation of the Christian Religion in the 
North of Europe," and, at the end of this book, he added a 
geographical sketch of the country of the Norsemen. In his 
treatise he speaks of Vinland at considerable length, closing 
with the remark, "This we know, not by fabulous conjecture, 
but from positive statements of the Danes." Adam of Bremen's 
work was iirst published in the year 1073, and was read by in- 
telligent men in many parts of Europe. Columbus being an 
educated man, and so deeply interested in geographical studies^ 
especially when they treated of the Atlantic Ocean, must have 
read and studied this work. These are facts, and the biography 
of Columbus will show that he always maintained a firm con- 
viction that there was land in the West, and he honestly adds, 
that he based this conviction on the authority of the learned 
writers. He stated, before he left Spain, that he expected to 
find land soon after sailing about seven hundred leagues ; hence 
he was acquainted with the breadth of the ocean. A day or 
two before coming in sight of the New World, he agreed with 
his mutinous crew that if he did not discover land within three 
days he would return. In fact the whole history of his discovery 
is fraught with evidence of his previous knowledge of America'. 
12. Such is an account of the Norse discovery of America, 
which I have repeated in this volimie, in order that it may 
become as widely known as any other equally well-authenticated 
historical narrative concerning the discovery and exploration of 
the shores of America. I have not given the sources of my 
own information on this subject, deeming it unnecessary, since, 
to avoid expense, the foot-notes requisite to such a course are 
not included ; but the authority upon which this account is 
given, OS also all other statements in this work, is ample and 
authentic. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 41 



CHAPTER IV. 

THE DISCOVERY OF COLUMBUS — OTHER DISCOVERIES. 

1. I HAVE but little space in this work to repeat what is 
already avcU known concerning the more recent voyages of dis- 
covery to America, but will sketch them, briefly, in their order. 
On the 3d of August, 1492, Colum- 
bus, under the wise patronage of the 
Spanisli rulers, with a flotilla of three 
small vessels, set sail on his flrst voy- 
age to the Western World. I shall 
not give the particulars of the voyage ; 
they are already well known. The 
empty days and nights wore on, when 
at length, at a critical moment, the 
great heart of Columbus beat Avith deep 
emotion ; as the dove announced the 
appearance of land to the great navi- 
gator of jNIosaic history, so was it the 
sight of land-birds that first sent the ..^..-=... 

waves of emotion coursing through the great soul of Columbus. 
These feathered messengers proclaimed his near approach 
to land by the eloquence of their inspiring presence. 
Then came the sight of sea-weed, as a confirmation of 
. that which the birds foreshadowed, at which the heart of 
Columbus beat still faster. As night came on, the keen eyes 
of the great commander were greeted by the faint glimmer of 
distant lights. In these last and dreadful hours of suspense he 
was not left without a sign by day and by night. The birds, 
sea- weed, and faintly glimmering lights were indeed, to the 
heart of Columbus, as full of assurance as were the pillar of 
cloud and the pillar of fire to the weary Israelites in their long 
and painful marches to discover the Land of Promise. At 
length, as the morning twilight advanced, joy filled the hearts 
of the whole crew ; and the rising of the sun on the ever 
memorable 11th of October, 1492, was greeted with continued 
shouts of "Land!" "Land!" from the little Spanish fleet. 
Before the weeping eyes of Columbus, whose heart could 
not keep from sending its crystal tokens of joy upward, there 




42 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

lay, in all the grandeur of tropical magnificence, the Island of 
San Salvador ! 

2. On landing, Columbus bowed with due reverence, and 
kissed the soil with deep religious fervor. Nor should we too 
lightly treat this ceremony. Well might the lips of the great 
discoverer press the virgin soil of this island of the Western 
World ! He raised the Hag of Spain on the island ; and, in a 
spirit of thankfulness for what had been achieved, Ihe congre- 
gated crew^s chanted the Te Deum. 'ihe aborigines of the 
country were not less moved by the appearance of the Span- 
iards than the voyagers themselves, though in a different way. 
Almost naked, they flocked around the explorers, being struck 
with awe and curiosity at the odd ceremony enacted before 
them. It is no great wonder that these simple natives regarded 
the strangers as children of the Sun on a visit to the .caith. 
But Avhile the Indians were astonished, the Spaniards were 
overjoyed; they beheld the animals, the trees, the plants, 
which were so different from any they had seen in Europe. 
The soil was plainly fertile, but nowhere was there a single 
trace of cultivation. After making quite an extended survey 
of the island, Columbus withdrew to his ships to continue his 
discoveries. 

3. After visiting several islands, he reached Cuba, Avhere 
he also took possession, in the name of their Spanish Majesties. 
After exploring the island for some time, and obtaining all the 
information possible from the natives, Columbus w^eighed 
anchor and sailed eastward, discovering Hayti, where he was 
kindly received by an Indian chieftain. AVhile on this coast 
one of his ships Avas wrecked, and out of the pieces of the 
wreck he constructed a rude fort, to protect his crew and his 
new native allies aiyainst the fierce Caribs. He mounted the 
little fort wMth the guns of the ship, and left a considerable 
portion of his crew to garrison it. Shortly after he sailed for 
Spain, and reached Palos on the 15th of March, 1493. There 
was great commotion and rejoicing in Spain on the arrival of 
Columbus. He was ennobled by the monarchs, and treated 
with great respect by all the people. He made three other 
voyages to America ; but we have already followed his discov- 
eries quite far enough for the purposes of this work. 

4. A distinguished Florentine navigator, named Americus 
Vespucius, succeeded Columbus in the great work of western 
discoveries, making four voyages. In an elaborate work on 
his discoveries he managed to set himself forth in such a light 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 43 

as to temporarily overshadow Columbus, and in this way he 
succeeded in giving his own name to the western continent. 
At this time England was only an inferior province, but her 
enterprising heart was stirred with the news of his wonderful 
discoveries, and in 1496, John Cabot, a Venetian merchant, 
residing at Bristol, being actuated by a strong desire to behold 
the wonders of the New World, obtained a commission from 
King Henry VII., and in June, on the following year, with his 
son Sebastian, sailed from Bristol. After a successful voyage, 
he reached the shore of Newfoundland and Nova Scotia, the 
latter of which he named Prima Vista. On St. John's day he 
discovered Prince Edward Island, which he called St. John. 
In 141)7 Sebastian Cabot made a second voyage to America, 
reaching Hudson's Bay, in an unsuccessful attempt to find a 
passage to China. He sailed as far southward as Florida after 
failino; in his oriijinal desiiyn. 

O o o 

5. In the year 1500 the King of Portugal sent out Gas- 
pard Cartereal. He discovered Labrador, and visited Green- 
land. He made a second voyage in the following year, but 
perished at sea. On his return from the first voyage he carried 
with him fifty Indians, Avhom he sold as slaves. In 1502 his 
brother Michael made a voyage in search of him, and was also 
. lost. 

i). The value of the cod fisheries was already attracting con- 
siderable attention in Europe, especially in France, and in 
150G Denys, of Honfleur, explored the Gulf of St. Lawrence. 
In the following year Aubert, of Dieppe, made a similar voy- 
age, and it is Avell authenticated that, in these years, a number 
of French fishermen visited the coast of Newfoundland. In 
1518 the Baron de Lerv made a vovage to America, touchins: 
at Sable Island. In 1524 John Verazzani, a Florentine navi- 
gator, made a voyage to America, with four French vessels, 
and in the following year he made another voyage, under the 
patronage of the King of France, and explored about two 
thousand miles of the eastern coast of America. He returned 
to France the same year, and is said to have made still another 
voyage the same year ; but nothing was ever heard from this 
expedition. 

7. For nine years after the last expedition by Verazzani, 
France did nothing towards making western discoveries, which 
was probably due to the sad eftccts of his suy)posed fate. But 
in 1534 events became more promising, and a scheme of ex- 
ploration and discovery was set on foot which ended in sue- 



44 



HISTORY OF DOMINIO:>T OF CANADxV, 



ccssful colonization. In thnt year, Philip Chabot, Admiral of 
Franco, urged the King, Francis I., to cstablich a colony in 
America. Ho pictured to the mind of his king tho succcggcs 
of Spain and Portugal in similar enterprises, which arouced 
liis jealousy. When ho had secured the royal favor ho recom- 
mended Jacques Car- 
tier, a diiiLinguiohcd 
naviga,torcf Gt. J.Ialo, 
as a suitablo person 
to conduct any ex- 
pedition v/hich might 
bo set on foot. Pur- 
suant to thcGO plans 
Carticr sailed for tho 
Nov/ TT'orld, rcach- 
ing- the coasts of 
Newfoundland in 
t^venty days. Passing 
through tho straits of 
Eelle Isle, he reached 
tho coasts of New 
Brunsv/icli, when, on 
the 9th of July, ho 
entered a bay, which, 
on account of the in- 
tense heat, ho named 
"Baiodes Chaleuro." 
On tho 24th of July 
ho sailed out cf the 
bay and rounded the 
headland cf Gaspc, 
where he landed and 
took possession of the 
country in the name of his king, erecting a cross, thirty feet 
high, on which he placed the arms of France, and an inscrip- 
tion emblematic of the sovereignty of France in America- 
Making some farther observations, he completed his Vv^ork and 
returned to France, taking with him two Indians, from v/hora 
he gained considerable information concerning the interior of 
Canada, particularly the river St. Lawrence. 

8. Cartier's first trip only fired his zeal. He desired to 
make farther explorations, to enter the river of Vviiich tho 
Indians had spoken. Hence, in May, 1535, he again sailc(^ 




JACQUES CABTIEK. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 45 

from St. Malo ; this time -with three ships. The voyage was 
tempestuous, but he reached Newfoundland in July, and pro- 
ceeded to explore the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Avhich he had 
visited the j'ear before. On the 10th day of August he entered 
a bay at the mouth of a river, now called St. John, which ho 
called St. Lawrence, from having entered it on the festival of 
that saint, which was a usual custom. This name has since 
been applied to the gulf and river emptying into it, which 
Cartier was the first to discover and explore. On the 1st of 
September he reached the Saguenay : and on the 7th, the 
Isle of Orleans. At this place he sent his two captive Indians 
ashore, and commissioned them to negotiate a favorable recep- 
tion for himself among the savages. They were successful, and 
on the following day he was kindly received by Donacona, a 
powerful Algonquin chief. 

9. Cartier resumed his journey and proceeded up the river, 
where, in a basin formed by the junction of the St. Charles 
with the St. Lawrence, he established his vessels for the winter. 
Here stood the Indian village of Stadacona, near where now 
stands the old city of Quebec. Being now located, or estab- 
lished, for the winter, Cartier set himself at work making 
observations, and gaining v/hat knowledge he could from the 
Indians. Learning of the Indian villa2:c called Kannatoe, 
located some seven days' journey to the west, he resolved to 
visit it ; but before venturinii^ amons: the savages he thought it 
prudent to advertise his power and importance as far as pos- 
sible, and for this purpose caused several of his cannon to be 
discharged. The performance had the desired effect. Taking 
one of his ships and two boats, Cartier set out on the 19tli of 
September, and on the 2d of October he reached Hochelaga, 
an Indian village, situated on the island where the metropolis 
of the Dominion now stands, — the city of Montreal. Here he 
met two thousand savages, who greeted him kindly, and with 
whom he exchanged knives and beads for fish and maize. Thus, 
m 1535, Cartier explored the site of Montreal, making a visit 
to the summit of the now celebrated Mount Royal, and admir- 
ing the beautiful prospect therefrom. 

10. Cartier and his crew spent the winter at their quarters 
before mentioned, near the site of the present city of Quebec ; 
but it was, in every sense, a wretched winter for the adven- 
turers. Many of them died of a disease contracted by inter- 
course with the natives, and all would, probably, have met the 
same ftite had not the Indians themselves prescribed a remedy. 



46 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

When the long winter had ended, and the ice had disappeared 
from the river, Cartier prepared to return home. On the 3d 
of May he erected a cross, with the arms of France upon it, — 
a token of his having taken possession of the country in the 
name of his king, and on the Gth of the same month, having cap- 
tured Donacona, two other chiefs, and eight warriors, he sailed 
for France, reaching St. Malo on the 8th of July, 1536. 
These Indians, thus cruelly taken to Europe, all died soon after 
reaching France, nor did their baptism, with great pomp and 
ceremony in the cathedral of Rouen, atone for the wrong com- 
mitted upon them. 

11. On Cartier's return to France he found his king too 
much enffao-ed with internal religious dissensions, and with a 
war with Spain, to devote much time or means to farther trans- 
atlantic schemes. Thus live years elapsed before anything 
farther was done to aid Cartier's return to Canada. However, 
in 1541, another expedition was made ready, to the command 
of which the French king had appointed Jean Francois de la 
Roque, Sieur de Roberval, a native of Picardy. The royal 
commission to this gentleman created him the first viceroy of 
Canada. Jacques Cartier was named second in command ; but, 
through some delay, M. de Roberval was not ready to embark 
at the appointed time, and Cartier, in May, 1541, set out in 
advance. The viceroy followed his lieutenant in April of the 
next year ; but in the mean time Cartier had reached the scene 
of his visit. He was at first received kindly by the Indians ; 
but when they were informed of the death of their chief, Dona- 
cona, and the other chiefs and warriors whom the French had 
taken away, they became viery hostile, which caused Cartier to 
move farther up the river, to Cape Rouge. Here he made a 
little settlement, fortified by two small forts or stockades, 
which he named Charlesbourg Royal. Here he left Beaupr6 
in command, and sailed up the river to Hochelaga, where he 
made an attempt upon the Sault St. Louis, — Lachino Rapids, 
— but, failing in the effort, he returned to Cape Rouge, where 
he spent the winter. In the following spring, 1542, he sailed 
for France. At Newfoundland he met M. de Roberval, who 
ordered him to return to Canada, which he avoided by weigh- 
ing anchor in the night, and continuing his vo3'"age homeward. 
However, Roberval pressed forward and spent the winter at 
Cape Rouge. He explored the country in the vicinity of the 
Saguenay, and made extensive observations in the vicinity of 
Montreal ; but after suffering many hardships he returned to 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 47 

France in the summer of 1543. Soon after Cartier's return to 
France he died, but his eminent services were not overlooked 
by his king. He had been ennobled, and license to trade in 
Canada was granted to his heirs for twelve years after his 
death. 

12. Owing to the death of Cartier, and the continued 
internal religious troubles in France, Canada was now almost 
forgotten by the king and the nobility. This continued for 
nearly fifty years. Meanwhile, however, they projected col- 
onies in Brazil and Florida; but these failed. In 1508 the 
Marquis de la Roche was constituted the first lieutenant-gen- 
eral of the king, and vested with power to grant leases of 
lands in New France, in form of fiefs, to "men of gentle 
blood." This may be regarded as the origin of* the feudal 
system, afterwards introduced into Canada, and subsequently 
modified by Cardinal Richelieu into a seigniorial tenure, which 
was not finally abolished until 1854. The marquis sailed for 
Nova Scotia, but reached only Sable Island, where he landed 
forty French convicts, with the intention of leaving them there 
until he should select a site for a permanent settlement. He 
was prevented from doing this by a fearful storm. Barely 
touching the coast of Nova Scotia, he became discouraged, and 
returned to France, leaving the convicts to their fate. In 
1605 the king sent out a ship for their relief, but only t^velvo 
men were found alive. These were taken to France, and 
granted a full pardon by King Henry IV. , on account of their 
hardships. The marquis was unfortunate in his finances, lost 
all his fortune, and died unhappily ; so his administration of the 
aflfairs of Canada was fraught with no good results. 

But during La Roche's unfortunate expedition to Canada, 
from which no good seems to have come, there was a class of 
people in France doing more to demonstrate the value of these 
transatlantic regions than cither king or nobility. I refer to 
the merchants. They had already begun to profit by the trade 
in fish and furs. The fishermen continued to frequent the 
coasts of Newfoundland. A bold adventurer, under the leader- 
ship of Dupont Grave and Chauvin, made several voyages to 
Tadousac, carrying home valuable cargoes of rich furs. A 
stone building, which was the first ever put up in Canada, was 
erected at Tadousac, and from that point, even in those early 
da3'"s, the fur trade was for a long time prosperous. Later, 
when these random expeditions began to wane, De Chaste, 
then Governor of Dieppe, formed a company of Rouen mer- 



48 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

chants, to prosecute the traffic in furs more successfully. In 
this step the colonization of Canada may be said to have Lad 
its origin. It was on the wings of commerce that French civ- 
ilization came to Canada, after all. Talk as you please of, and 
applaud as you justly may, the piety and privations of the 
Jesuit missionaries, yet it was not Roman Catholic zeal which 
colonized New France. It was for valuable cargoes of fish, 
and more particularly of fur, which induced the bold expedi- 
tions of the French westward, rather than the souls of the red 
men. The priests may have labored hard to win the savages 
to the gospel of the cross. Indeed, there can be no doubt of 
this ; but their efforts were not more futile than were their 
maintenance in the M^estern world dependent upon the enter- 
prising schemes of French merchants, which, in conjunction 
with and under the royal patronage of the French king, gave 
rise to the permanent French settlements in America. 

14. Do Chaste's company of Koucn merchants determined 
upon active measures, and in 1603 secured the services of 
Samuel Champlain, who had just returned to France from a 
voyage to the West Indies. Champlain proved himself to be 
just the man to whom so important Ci mission as that of found- 
ing the first French settlements in America should be intrusted. 
Accompanied by Dupont Grave, who had been associated with 
Chauvin, Champlain set sail, with three small vessels, in the 
same year. Passing into the St. Lawrence, he examined the 
site of Three Rivers, wdth a view of establishing a trading-post 
there, and then pushed forward to Hochclaga, which he found 
deserted, except by a few scattering aborigines. He ascended 
Mount Royal, and stood w^here Cartier had stood more than sixty 
years before ; but after making some observations he and his 
comrades returned to France. 

15. However, France was not keeping pace with the other 
nations in the contest of American colonization, but she was 
now to take more thorough measures. De Chaste was suc- 
ceeded by the Sieur de Monts, Governor of Pons, to whom 
King Henry had accorded a monopoly of the fur trade, which 
had now become the chief motive power of all French expe- 
ditions. His charter included all parts of North America Ij'ing 
between Cape de Roze, in Newfoundland, and the fiftieth 
dcm-ee of north latitude ; it farther declared that all French 
Protestants should enjoy in America, as they then did in 
France, full freedom for their public worship, with the one 
reservation that the work of converting the Indians should be 



EXGLAND, A^^D THE TJXITED STAT.c:S- 



49 



left exclusively to the Catholics. Do IMonts ^\'as a man of 
great ability, who had distinguished himself by his loyalty 
and sagacity ; hence ho was just the man to succeed Do 
Chaste in the manas^e- 
mcnt of the company's 
afiairs. I refer to the 
company of merchants 
organized by Do 
Chaste. Ho increased 
and fully revived this 
company by including 
some of the principal 
merchants of Kochelle 
and other cities. 
Four ships were 
manned and provi- 
sioned ; two of these 
were designed for the 
fur trade at Tadousac, 
whence they were to 
search the entire coast 
and protect the com- 
pany in their fur-trad- 
ing monopoly ; the 
other two vessels were 
to carry the colonists 
to suitable places fory 
settlement. The ships ^^ 
which were now ready ~ 
sailed from Havre-de- _^ 
Grace in INIarch, 1G04. ^ 
De Monts, preferring 
Acadia to Canada, 
sailed with two ships 
in that direction. His preference was based on the supposition 
that the climate was milder in that region. Acadia, or Nova 




SIEUR I>B JIOXTS. 



Scotia, was the chief centre of French American traffic at that 
time. In these ships were Eoman Catholic priests, Protestant 
ministers, artisans, agriculturalists, and soldiers. Samuel Cham- 
plain, a distinguished French navigator, and M. De Poutrincourt, 
a gentleman of wealth, who intended to settle in America, also 
accompanied De jNIonts on this important expedition. Do Monts 
and his companions made a pretty general exploration of the 



50 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

western portion of Nova Scotia, and the southern part of New 
Brunswick, with some portions of Maine. Finally he dis- 
covered a beautiful spot, near an enclosed sheet of water, which 
he called Port lioyal (Annapolis). Poutrincourt was de- 
lighted with the place, and decided upon it as suitable for a 
settlement, and l3e Monts, who, by his patent, owned half the 
continent, made him a grant of it. This grant was the first 
made in America, and was afterwards conlirmcd by letters 
patent from Henry IV. De Monts then sailed in search of a 
place for his own settlement. He discovered the St. John 
river, and at length fixed upon a rocky islet, at the mouth of 
another river, which he named St. Croix. " Here he remained 
during the winter, while Champlain explored the coast as far as 
Penobscot. In the following summer he went in search of a 
more eligible site for his settlement ; but, an untoAvard accident 
having occurred at Cape Cod, he became discouraged and re- 
turned to St. Croix. Not wishing to remain another winter at St. 
Croix, De Monts removed the colony to Port Poyal. Unpleasant 
news, however, induced him to return at once to France, where 
he found strong opposition to his colonizing schemes. Through 
the zeal of Poutrincourt and Marc Lescarbot (a lawyer and 
poet) he was enabled to fit out another ship, and to despatch it 
to the colony in charge of these two friends. In the mean time 
Dupont Grave, who had employed his leisure in exploring the 
neighboring coasts, returned to France ;. while Poutrincourt 
and Champlain continued the explorations, leaving Lescarljot 
in charge of the colony. Lescarbot busied himself in tilling 
the soil, and in collecting materials for a projected history of 
New France. His versatility and vivacity infused new life into 
the self-exiled colonists at Port Poyal ; but in the midst of 
their enjoyment news arrived that the De Monts' charter had 
been rescinded, and that the company refused any longer to 
bear the expense of the colony. There was, therefore, no 
alternative but to abandon it; and, much to the grief of Mem- 
berton (the venerable Indian sagamore of Annapolis, who had 
been their fast friend), Poutrincourt, Champlain, Lescarbot, 
and other colonists, quitted the settlement and returned to 
France in 1607." 

Leaving Nova Scotia for a short time, let us turn our atten- 
tion to Canada, to which Do Monts, in 1607, having abandoned 
Nova Scotia, now directed his efforts. It was probably through 
the representations of Champlain that De Monts now attempted 
to establish a settlement on the St. Lawrence. Having 



ENGLAITD, AND TIIE "UNITED STATES. 



51 



obtained a renewal of his charter for one year, ho fitted 
out two vessels, and committed the expedition to the care 
of Champlain, appointing Dupont Grave his lieutenant. 
This expedition 
sailed from Ilarllcur 
on the 13th of 
April, 1608, and 
arrived at Tadousac 
on the 3d of Juno. 
Hero Dupont Grave 
remained to trade 
with the Indians, 
while Champlain 
pushed forward up 
the St. Lawrence, 
looking for a suit- 
able place to make 
a settlement. Ho 
arrived at the site 
of the Indian vil- 
lage of Stadacona, 
on the od of July. 
Here, after scru- 
tiny, his choice fell 
upon a bold prom- 
ontory, covered 
by a luxuriant 
growth of vines, 
and shaded by large 
walnut trees, called by the natives, most of Avhoni had now 
deserted the place, Kebec or Quebec. Near the place Cartier 
had erected a fort, and passed a winter, sixty-three years before. 
17. At this place, on the 3d of July, 1G08, Champlain laid 
the foundation of the present city of Quebec. First of all, 
rude l)uildings were erected on the elevation, to serve as a tem- 
porary protection to the colonists. " Nature herself would seem 
to have formed the taljlo land, whose bases are bathed by the 
rivers St. Lawrence, Cape Rouge, and St. Charles, as the cradle, 
first, of the colony ; next, the central point of an after empire. 
It was not to be wondered at, therefore, that the tact of Cham- 
plain led him at once to pitch upon this locality as the proper 
head-quarters of the projected establishment. Having ftiirly set 
his hands at work, Champlain soon saw rise befoio him a fort, 




SAMUEl. CHAMPLAIS. 



HISTORY QF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



of some extent and respectable strength, while several laborers 
were busied in clearing contiguous land for tillage, or in other 
useful and urgent works. The foundations of a town, yet to 
become one of the most famous cities of the New World, were 
now being laid in the presence of wondering red men of tfie 
woods." — Garneau. When the temporary buildings were 
erected, an extensive embankment was foi-med securely above 
the reach of the highest tides, where Mountain street was af- 
terwards located, on which the more permanent dwellings and 
fortifications were built. 

18. It should be observed that the native population of Can- 
ada, in the neighborhood of Quebec and Mount Koyal, was no 
longer what it was in the days of Cartier. The thrifty villages 
^f Stadacona and Hochelaga had fallen into ruins. The brave, 
athlete warriors no longer darted with a nervous agility through 
the woodlands bordering the great river, but, in their places, a 
dwarf, shrunken, suiFering, conquered race stalked moodily, in 
desultory bands. It was plain that, during the absence of the 
French, the furies of a barbarous warfare had raged in many 
quarters along this fertile valley. The Algonqnins had been 
sorely defeated by their old enemies, the Iroquois, and were 
glad to find in Champlain a possible redress of their gi'ievances. 
When closely pressed regarding the country to the south and 
west, and urged to act as guides to an exploring expedition to 
that region, they shrank with terror from entering a country in 
which they would be under the merciless weapons of their ene- 
mies. Champlain was not long in discovering that his Indian 
friends were living in mortal terror of the Five Nations, who 
inhabited the country to the south and west of Lake Ontario. 
Utterly unable to hold out against these fierce enemies, they 
sought the aid of the French colonists against them. Cham- 
plain, unaware of the strength of the Iroquois confederacy, 
and unacquainted with the possibilities of an Indian warfare, 
entered into an alliance with the Indians he found inhabiting the 
Lower St. Lawrence against their foes, perhaps the more readily 
since he hoped to be able thereby to establish a lasting peace 
with the native tribes nearest his colony. But in this the great 
pioneer committed a grave error, for which he is hardly to be 
censured. 

19. The colonists passed the winter at Quebec, but hap- 
pily without experiencing the hardships of their predecessors. 
But there were sufficient reasons for this difference. They had 
much better dwellings, warmer clothing, an abundance of good 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 53 

provisions, and perhaps a more enthusiastic commander. But 
little of importance occurred during the Avinter. Friendly re- 
lations were maintained between the Avhites and the natives, 
not only among the Algonquins, but even the distant Iroquois 
sent a deputation to the fort, soliciting the friendship of Cham- 
plain, and offering him in return all the aid within their power 
in exploring the country of the west. 

20. Thus was Quebec established, in 1608. A rude fort 
was erected on that spot, which has since become fiimous in the 
literary annals of two great nations. From that early centre of 
civilization radiated afterwards, as we shall see, a large number 
of French scttlcinents, embracing those in Newfoundland, Cape 
Breton, Nova Scotia, Upper Canada, Michigan, and through 
the Wabash, Ohio, and Mississippi valleys, as far south as 
Louisiana. Thus I have traced, briefly, a complete narrative 
of the early explorations and settlements in America. These 
explorations had lasted during the fifteenth and sixteen cen- 
turies, and at the close of the sixteenth the only permanent settle- 
ments Avere those of the Spaniards at St. Augustine and Santa 
Fe. At the beginning of the seventeenth century permanent 
settlements multiplied. They Avere made by 

The French at Port RoyaJ, JSf.S., in 1605; 
The English at Jamei^town, in 1607 ; 

The French at Quebec^ in 1608; 

The Dutch at Mio York, in 1613; 

The English Fuiut ass at Plymoufh, in 1620. 

2 1 . Now, to recapitulate the whole subject, by way of 
chronology, so far as I have pursued it, Ave have the following 
valuable result : — 

1492. Columbus discovered the Ncav Worlds October 12. 
1 197. The Cabots disew:)vered Labrador, July 3. 
1498. The Cabots explored the Atlantic Coast. 

South America AA'as discovered by Columbus, 

August 10. 
Yasco do Gaina sailed around the Cape of Good 
Hope and discovered a passage to India. 

1512. Ponce de Leon discovered Florida, April 6. 

1513. Balboa saw the Pacific Ocean, September 29. 
1519-21; Cortez conquered Mexico. 

1520. ^Magellan discovered and sailed throuirh the straits 



54 IIISTOKY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

which bear his name, into the Pacific Ocean ; 
and his vessel, returning home by the Cape of 
Good Hope, had made the first circumnavigation 
of the globe. 
1524. Verrazani explored the coast of North America. 
1528. Narvaez explored part of Florida. 

1534-35. Cartier discovered Gulf of St. Lawrence and as- 
cended the river to Montreal. 

1539-41. De Soto rambled over the Southern States, and in 
1541 discovered Mississippi river. 

1540-42. Cabrillo explored California and sailed along the 
Pacific coast. 

1541-42. Roberval 'attempted to plant a colony on the St. 
Lawrence, but failed. 
1562. Ribaut attempted to plant a Huguenot colony at 
Port Royal, but failed. 

1564. Laudonniere attempted to plant another Huguenot 

colony on St. John's river. It was destroyed by 
the Spaniards. 

1565. Melendcz founded a colony at St. Augustine, 

Florida ; first permanent settlement in the United 
States. 
1576-7. Frobisher tried to find a north-west passage ; entered 
Baffin's Bay, and twice attempted to found a 
colony in Labrador, but failed. 
1578-80. Drake sailed along Pacific coast to Oregon, wiu- 
tered in San Francisco, and circumnavigated the 
globe. 

1582. Espojo founded Santa Fe ; second eldest town in the 

United States. 

1583. Gilbert attempted to reach the continent, but was 

lost at sea. 
1583-7. Raleigh twice attempted to plant a colony in Vir- 
ginia, but failed. 

1602. Gosnold discovered Cape Cod, May 14. 

1605. De Monts estabhshed a colony at Port Royal, Nova 
Scotia ; first permanent French settlement in 
America. 

1607. The English settled Jamestown; first permanent 

English settlement in America, May 23. 

1608. Champlaiu planted a colony at Quebec; first per- 

manent French settlement in Canada. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 55 

1G09. Hudson discovered Iliidsoii River. 

Champlaiii discovered Lake Chainplain. 
1G13. Settlement of New York by the Dutch. 
1620. Puritans settled at Plymouth ; first English settle- 
ment in New Eni^land, December 21. 



CHAPTER V. 

AMERICAN EXPLORATIONS. 

EXPLORATIONS BY TUB SPANISH, ENGLISH, AND DUTCH — FIRST SETTLEMENTS — 

1000 TO IGOO. 

1. MoEE than a century had now elapsed since Columbus 
discovered America, yet in no part of the present Dominion of 
Canada had a permanent settlement been effected ; but this was 
not the case with other portions of America. Hence we will turn 
for a moment and trace the current of events in those quarters, 
and in this short diversion we will return to the beginning of 
the sixteenth century. First, then, as to the operations of the 
Spaniards, who were foremost among the earliest western ex- 
plorations. " America, at this time," says one writer, " was to 
the Spaniard a land of vague but magnificent promise, where 
the simple natives wore unconsciously the costliest gems, and 
the sands of the rivers sparkled with gold. Every returniug 
ship brought fresh news to quicken the pulse of Spanish enthu- 
siasm. Now, Cortez had taken Mexico, and revelled in the 
wealth of the Montezumas ; now, Pizarro had conquered P^ru, 
and captured the riches of the Incas ; now, Magellan, sailing 
through the straits which bear his name, had crossed the Pacific, 
and his vessel, returning home by the Cape of Good Hope, had 
circumnaviirated the ijlobe. Men of the hio;hest rank and cul- 
ture, warriors, adventurers, all flocked to the New World. Soon 
Cuba, Hispaniola, Porto Rico, and Jamaica were settled, and 
ruled by Spanish governors. Among the Spanish explorers of 
the sixteenth century was, first. Ponce de Leon, a gallant 
soldier, but an old man, and in disgrace. He coveted the glory 
of conquest to restore his tarnished re})utation, and, l)esides, he 
had heard of a magical fountain, in this fairy land, where one 
might bathe and be young again. He accordingly equipped an 



5G 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



expctlition, and sailed in search of this fahlcd treasure. On 
Easter Sunday, 1512, ho came in sight of a hmd gay ^vith spring 
flowers. Ill honor of the day he called it Florida. lie sailed 
along the coast, touching several points, but returned home at 
lust, having found neither youth, gold, nor glor}'." 

2. The second of these Spanish explorers was Balhoa, who 
crossed the Isthmus of Darien in 1513, and from the snmmit of 
the Andes hchcld the wide expanse of the Pacitic Ocean. Wad- 
ing into its waters with his naked SAVord in one hand, and the 
banner of Castile in the other, he solemnly declared that the 
ocean, and all the shores which it might touch, belonged to the 
crown of Spain forever. The third of these Spanish explorers 
Avas De Narvacz, who received a grant of Florida, and, in 1528, 
with three hundredinen, attempted its conquest. Striking into the 
interior, they wandered about, allured by the prospect of gold. 
Finally they reached the Gulf of INIexico. Here they constructed 
some boats and put to sea, but after six weeks of peril they 
were shipwrecked. De Narvaez was lost. Six years later the 







DE SOTO S MARCH, 



only four survivors of the expedition reached the Spanish 
settlements on the Pacilic coast. The next was Ferdinand de 
Soto, who, undismayed by these failures, resolved upon the con- 
quest of Florida. He set out with six hundred choice men, amid 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 57 

the fluttering of l)aniiers, the pealing of trumpets, and the gleam- 
ing of helmet and lance. For month after month this procession 
of cavaliers, priests, soldiers, and Indian captives strolled 
through the Avilderness, wherever they suspected a prospect of 
gold. They traversed Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi. 
In the third year of their wanderings ( 1541 ) they emerged upon 
the banks of the Mississippi. Here De Soto died (1542). At 
dead of night his followers sank his body in the river, and the 
sullen waters buried his hopes and ambition. "He had crossed 
a large part of the continent," says Bancroft, "and found nothing 
so remarkable as his burial-place." De Soto had been the soul 
of the company. When he died the other adventurers were 
only anxious to get home in safety. They constructed boats, 
and, descending the river, little over half of this gallant array 
reached the settlements in Mexico. 

3. Mclendez, the next of the Spanish explorers, followed 
De Soto, but was wiser than he. On landing, in 1G65, he at 
once laid the foundations of a colony. In honor of the day he 
named the place St. Augustine. This is the oldest settlement 
in the United States. Fort jNlarion, built near this spot, by the 
Spaniards, in 175G, still exists, and is full of interest. 

4. But the Spanish explorations on the Pacitic coast are also 
full of interest. California, in the sixteenth century, was a 
general term applied ts) all the region north of Mexico, on the 
western coast. It is said to have originated in a romance 
popular in the time of Cortez, in which appeared a character 
called Calefornia, queen of the Amazons. The JNlexicans in- 
formed the Spaniards that most of their gold came from these 
northern regions, and Cortez, therefore, turned his attention in 
that direction, and sent out several expeditions thitherward; 
but all these expeditions were fruitless. Cabrillo, in 1542, 
made the first voyage along the Pacific coast, going as far north 
as the present limits of Oregon. New INIexico was explored 
and named by Espcjo, in 1582, who founded Santa Fe, which 
is the second oldest town in the United States. Thus Spain, at 
the close of the sixteenth century, held possession not only of 
the AVest Indies, but of Yucatan, Mexico, and Florida; and it 
is a curious fact, that a writer of that time locates Quebec in 
Florida, and a map in the time of Henry 11. gives the name 
of Florida to all North America. The Spanish explorers had 
traversed a large portion of the present Southern States and 
the Pacitic coast. 

5. I will mention, in this place, that the French sent out cer- 



58 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

tain expeditions to America, in the sixteenth century, which have 
no paiticular connection with Canada or Acadia. Jean Kibault, 
iin excellent seaman and a stanch Protestant, led an expedi- 
tion, in 15.32, under the auspices of Coligu}-. The party landed 
at Port Koyal, S. C. They were greatly captivated by the 
prospect, and erected a fort, which they named Carolina, in 
honor of Charles IX., King of France. The Heet departed, 
and the little party of thirty were left alone on the continent. 
They were the only civilized men from JNIexico to the North 
Pole. Finally they became discouraged, bnilt a rude ship, and 
put to sea. Famine overtook them, and they killed and ate one 
of their number. At last a vessel took them on board, but 
only to carry them captives to England. Thus perished the 
French colony of Carolina, but its name still survives. Two 
years after, Ladonniere built a fort, also called Carolina, on 
the river St. John. Soon the colonists were reduced to the 
verge of starvation. Their sufferings were horrible. Weak 
and emaciated, they fed themselves with roots, sorrel, pounded 
hsh-bones, and even roasted snakes. "Oftentimes," says La- 
donniere, "our poor soldiers were constrained to give away 
the very shirts from their backs to get one tish. If at anytime 
they shewed unto the savages the excessive price which they 
tooke, these villaines Avould answer them roughly : If thou make 
so great account of thy merchandise, eat it, and we will eat our 
fish : then fell they out a laughing, and mocked us with open 
throat." They were on the point of leaving, when they were 
reinforced by Ivibaut. The French seemed now fairly fixed on 
the coast of Florida. The Spaniards, however, claimed the 
country. jNIelendez, ahout this time, had made a settlement in 
St. Augustine. He led an expedition northward, through the 
wilderness, and, in the midst of a fearful tempest, attacked 
Fort Carolina. Almost the entire population were massacred. 
6. It is necessary, before returning to the Canadian nar- 
rative, that I should speak of the English explorations in 
America during the sixteenth century. The Cabots, sailing 
under an English flag, discovered the American continent, 
exploring its coast from L;ibrador to Albemarle Sound. 
Though the English claimed the northern part of the continent 
by right of this discovery, yet, during the sixteenth century, 
they paid little attention to it. At the close of that period, 
however, maritime enterprise was awakened. British sailors 
cruised on every sea. Like the other navigators of the day, 
they were eager to discover the western passage to Asia. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



59 



Frol)i.shcr made the first of these attempts to go north of 
America to Asia, — Cabot's phiii repeated. lie pushed through 
strange waters, threading his perilous way among towering ice- 
bergs, until, in 1576, he entered Baffin's Ba>% Here he set up 
a pile of stones, and took possession of the country in the 
name of the British Crown, after which he returned home. 
" One of the sailors brought back a stone Avhich was thought 
to contain gold. A fleet of fifteen vessels was forthwith 
equipped for this new El Dorado. The north-west passage to 
Cathay Avas forgotten. After innumeral)le perils incident to 
Arctic regions, the ships were loaded with the precious ore 
and returned. Unfortunately, history neglects to tell us what 
became of the cargo ! " Sir Francis Drake was, perhaps, one of 
the most famous of the English 
explorers. In one of his expedi- 
tions, while on the Isthmus of 
Panama, he climbed, as repre-' 
sented by the accompanying en- 
graving, to the top of a tree, 
whence he beheld the waters of 
the l)road Pacific Ocean. He 
was delighted with the inspiring 
prospect, and while enjoying it 
inwardly resolved to sail an 
English ship on those waters. 
Returning to his country, ho 
equipped a fleet, sailed through 
the Straits of Magellan, and 
coasted along the Pacific shore to 
the southern part of Oregon. He 
repaired his ships in San Fran- 
cisco harbor ; thence sailing west- 
ward, he returned to England 
by the Cape of Good Hope, in 
1059. Hence he was the first 
Englishman who explored the 
Pacific coast, and the second 
European who circumnavigated 
the globe. Sir Humphrey Gil- 
bert, who carefully studied the 
accounts of American discov- 
eries, resolved to send out companies to form permanent 
settlements, but his attempts at colonization were futile and 




DRAKE BEHOLDS THE PACIFIC. 



60 



HISTORY OF DOMIXION OF CANADA, 



fatal. Sailiiio; homeward in a small and insufficient vessel, he 
Avent down in a fearful storm, and neither ship nor crew was 
ever seen again. 

7. Sir Walter Raleigh was a half-ln-other of Sir Humphrey 
Gilbert, and succeeded him in the work of colonization. He 
was a great favorite with Queen Eliza1)eth, and readily obtained 
a royal patent to a large extent of territory in America, which 
he called Virginia, in honor of Elizabeth, the virgin queen. 

He iirst attempted to 
plant a colony on Ivoan- 
okc Island ; but his set- 
tlers made no etibrt to 
cultivate the soil, rather 
spending their time hunt- 
ing for gold and pearls. 
Their condition soon be- 
came wretched, and iinally 
they were narrowly res- 
"^S^^i}M^lMil'^^^''ii^^l^^'^^L^^S^^^c> cued by Drake, while on 

one of his exploring ex- 
^'^^^%^^//M [i^ W^ peditions, who carried 
S^^<i^M^m// it' ii YilJ'^^m. them home. They had 

lived long enough in 
America to learn the use 
of to1)acco and the potato. 
These they introduced in- 
to England. But Sir Wal- 
ter was not discouraged by this failure. The next time he sent 
ont families instead of single men, and John White Avas ap- 
pointed Governor of the city of Raleigh, which they Avere 
to found on the Chesapeake Bay. A granddaughter of 
Governor White, born soon after they arrived at Roanoke 
Island, is said to be the tirst English child l)orn in America. 
After the settlement Avas made, the governor returned to 
England for su[)i)lies, Avhere he found his country engaged 
in a threatened attack of the Spanish Armada ; and it Avas 
three }'ears before he Avas able to return to his American 
home. jMeanwhile the colony and his family had perished 
completely, no one being left to tell the story of their suffer- 
ings. Raleigh had noAV spent a large sum on his American 
colony, and, being quite out of courage, transferred his patent 
to others. 

8. But as Avith the French in respect of trading expeditions. 




SIR HUMPHREY GILUERT. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. Gl 

SO with the English, — they were more successful than at 
cflbrts at colonization. " English vessels frequented the banks 
of Newfoundland, and probably occasionally visited yirginia. 
Gosnold, a master of a small bark, in 1602 discovered and 
named Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard, and other neighboring 
localities. Loading his vessel with sassafras-root, which Avas 
then highly esteemed as a medicine, he returned home to pub- 
lish the most favorable reports of the region he had visited. 
Some British merchants accordingly sent out, the next year, a 
couple of vessels, under Captain Pring. He discovered several 
harbors in Maine, and brought back his ships loaded with furs 
and sassafras. As the result of these vaiious explorations, 
many felt an earnest desire to colonize the New AYorld. James 
I. accordingly granted the vast territory of Virginia, as it was 
called, to two companies, the London and the Plymouth. The 
London Company, whose principal men resided at London, had 
the tract between the thirty-fourth and thirty-eighth degrees of 
latitude. This was called South Virginia. They sent out a 
colony, in 1607, under Captain Newport. He made at James- 
town tha first jjermanent EnfjUsh settlement in the United States. 
The Plj^mouth Company, whoso principal men resided in Plym- 
outh, had the tract between the forty-first and forty-fifth 
degrees of latitude. This was called North Virginia. The 
charter granted to these companies Avas the first under wdiich 
English colonies were planted in the United States. It is 
therefore worthy of careful study. It contained no idea of self- 
government. The people were not to have the election of an 
ofiicer." The king and his council appointed at his own pleasure 
men to have entire control of these colonies, and the Church of 
England was the established religion ; moreover, for five years 
the entire proceeds of the colonies were to constitute a common 
fund, and no one was to have any of the product of his own 
labor. 

9. The Dutch manifested no interest in the New World 
during all these years, but, in the beginning of the seventeenth 
century, Capt. Henry Hudson, an English navigator in the 
Dutch service, entered Ncav York harbor. In 1609, Hudson, 
in attempting to reach the Pacific, ascended the grand river 
which bears his name. On this discovery the Dutch based 
their claim to the land extending from the Delaware river to 
Cape Cod, and called it New Netherland. 

10. The full extent of the discoveries and explorations which 
I have enumerated in the foregoing pages may be summed 



Q2 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

upas follows: 1. The Spaniards conlined their settlements 
and explorations to the AVcst Indies and the adjacent mainland, 
and in t\ui United States made settlements only in Florida and 
Xew Mexico. 2. The French claimed the whole of New 
Franco, and made their first settlements in Acadia and Canada. 
3. The English explored the Atlantic coast at various points, 
and claimed this vast territory, which they termed Virginia, 
having made their first settlement at Jamestown. 4. The 
Dutch laid claim to Xew Netherland, but made no settlement 
till 1G13. 

11. These four claims, of course, conflicted with each other, 
and produced some confusion ; but so long as the few settle- 
ments were separated 1)y hundreds of miles of savage forests 
this conflict of claim to territory Avas of little account. How- 
ever, the settlements increased and grew, and strife as to 
boundary began ; but the contests were for the most part decided 
by an appeal to arms. 



CHAPTER VI. 

ENGLAND FROM 1500 TO IGOO. 

THE REIGNS OF IIEXRT VIII., EDWARD YI., MART, AND ELIZABETH. 

1. We have now come to a period in our account of the early 
history of America, or rather of that portion of America now 
embraced within the limits of the Dominion of Canada and the 
United States, and, in accordance with the plan of this work, 
I must go back and bring forward a brief narrative of the events 
in English history during the same period, which embraces the 
sixteenth century. But first let me remark that my reference 
to affairs in England previous to the conquest of Canada, in 
1760, Mill be very brief. The reason is obvious. Canada, 
previous to that date, was a French colony; hence, during that 
period, events in England have nothing in common with those 
in Canada. However, the people of the Dominion of the 
present day have a deep interest in English history of any and 
all periods, and this tact alone is quite suificient to explain the 
ajjparent inharmony of connecting the history of an English 
kingdom with that of a French colony. If anything more 
were needed to justify this plan, it may be found in a contem- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



63 



pLition of the ftict that Frauco was only shedding the uncertain 
light of Christianity upon a country which Avas destined, in tlic 
eternal order of things, to receive the more complete ])oanty of 
Ensrlish institutions and Auijlo-Saxon civilization. 

2. Decidedly I have nothing to do with the history of 
England previous to the beginning of the sixteenth century, 
in this volume, yet I may construct, in this place, a brief 
tabular statement of the history before that time, as a mere 
guide-board to prevent any confusion in the minds of young 
readers ; — 

ENGLAND FROM B.C. 54 TO A.D. 17G0. 
England under Roman Rule, B.C. 54 to A.D. 412. 

SAXON HISTORY OF ENGLAND. 

The Reii^n of Alfred the Great . . from 871 to 901 . . histed ;]0 yrs. 

The Reign of Etlward the Elder . . from 901 to 9:^5 . . lasted 24 yrs. 

The Reign of Athelstan from 92.> to 941. . lasted 1(3 yrs. 

The^eigns of the Six Boy Kings . . from 941 to lOlG . . lasted 75 yrs. 



THE DANES, AND THE RESTORED SAXONS. 

The Reign of Canute from 1016 to 1035 . . lasted 19 yrs. 

The Reign of Harold Harefoot . . from 1035 to 1040 . . lasted 5 yrs, 
TheReigh of Ilardicanute . . . . from 1040 to 1042 . .lasted 2 yrs. 
The Reign of Edward the Confessor, from 1012 to 10G6 . . lasted 24 yrs. 
The Reign of Harold the Second and the Norman Conquest were also 
within the year 10G6. 



THE NORMANS. 



from lOGG to 1087 



The Reign of William the First, 

called the Conquerer . . . . ^ 
The Reign of William the Second, f n -.^o- i. haa 

called°Rufns ! J ^^'^^^ ^^^' ^^ ^^^^ 

The Reign of Henry the First, f ^ -,-,nr,^ ,10- 

called Fine Scholar\ . . . ;[ from 1100 to 113o 
The Reigns of Matilda and Stephen . from 1135 to 1151 



. lasted 21 yrs. 

. lasted 13 yrs. 

. lasted 35 yrs. 
. lasted 19 yrs. 



THE PLANTAGENETS. 

The Reign of Henry the Second . , from 1154 to 1189 

The Reign of Richard the First, ? <. -.^on.. ■nr.n 

called the Lion-Heart . . . ' J ^rom 1189 to 1199 
The Reign of John, called Lackland, from 1199 to 121G 

The Reign of Henry the Third . . from 1216 to 1272 

The Reign of Edward the First,?. ,^__^ .^^- 

called Lonjrshanks ....!< ^^'o^ 1^72 to 1307 



. lasted 35 yrs. 

. lasted 10 yrs. 

. lasted 17 yi's. 
. lasted 56 yrs. 

. lasted 35 yrs. 



64 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

The Reign nf Edward the Second . from 1307 to 1327 . . Listed 20 yrs. 

The Reign of Edward the Third . from 1327 to 1377 . . lasted 50 yrs. 

The Reign of Itiehard the Second . from 1377 to 1309 . . lasted 12 j-rs. 

The Reign of llenry the Fourth, ) ^^,^^^ ^3^9 ^^ ^^^3 _ _ ^^^^^^^ ^^ 

calleil Bolmgbroke ^ •' 

The Reign of Henry the Fifth . . from 1413 to 1422 . . lasted 9 yrs. 

r,., r. • rTT ^1 c- ^i } besran in 1422, ended in 1461, and lasted 
The Reign of Henry the Sixth, > -tti years 

The Reign of Edward the / began in 14G1, ended in 1483, and lasted 

Fourth I 22 years. 

The Reign of Edward the ( began in 1483, ended in 1483, and lasted a 

Filth .,,..,.. ^ few weeks 
The Reign of Richard the f began in 1483, ended in 1485, and lasted 

Third ^ 2 years. 



THE TUDORS. 

The Reign of Henry the ? began in 1485, ended in 1509, and lasted 

Seventh \ 24 years. 

™, Ti . OTT ii T^- x.4.\ ? beo;an in 1509, ended in 1547, and lasted 
The Reign 01 Henry the Eighth, > .?r, ,.„„,. ^ 
=' '' ° <) ob years. 



3. The foregoing table represents that period of English 
History concerning which I have to say nothing whatever in 
this volume. It was, however, during the reign of the last- 
named sovereign, Henry VIII., that Cartier visited and ex- 
plored the St. Lawrence ; but it was not until the reign of James 
I. that any permanent settlements Avere effected in Canada or 
the United States. The following talkie represents that portion 
of English history with which we have to do in this volume, 
and I shall take occasion to intersperse it logically or chrono- 
logically, as the circumstances seem to demand : — 

The Reign of Edward the ) began in 1547, ended in 1853, and lasted 

Sixth \ yeai-s. 

n-u o • i-Tiir > began in 1553, ended in 1558, and lasted 

The Reign oi Mary . . . .^ fye^rs. 

/ began in 1558, ended in 1603, and lasted 
■ ^ 45 years. 



Tlie Reign of Elizabeth 



THE STUARTS. 



began in 1603, ended in 1625, and lasted 
'2-2 years. 



The Reign of James the First, i 

The Reign of Charles the ? began in 1625, ended in 1649, and lasted 
First I 24 years. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. Q^ 



THE COMMOXWEALTH. 

The Council of State and } began in 1G49, ended in 1653, and lasted 

Government by Parliament . ^ 4 j'ears. 
The Protectorate of Oliver / began in 1653, ended in 1658, and lasted 

Cromwell ) ^ jears. 

The Protectorate of Richard / began in 1658, ended in 1659, and lasted 7 

Cromwell ^ months. 

The Council of .State and Gov- / resumed in 1659, ended in 1660, and lasted 

ernment by Parliament . . ^ 13 months. 

THE STUARTS RESTORED. 

The Reign of Charles the ) began in 16C0, ended iu 1685, and lasted- 

Second ^ '2ij years. 

The Reign of James the ( began in 1085, ended in 1688, and lasted 



f began ii 
I 3 year 



Second ^ 3 years 

THE REVOLUTION, AND SINCE. 

The Reign of William the ) began in 1689, ended in 1695, and lasted 

Third and Mary the Second, ^ 6 years. 
The Reign of William the ) , ended in 1702, and lasted 

Third S 13 years. 

The Reign of Anno . . . /| began jnJ702, ended in 1714, and lasted 

The Reign of George the ( began in 1714, ended in 1727, and lasted 

First I 13 years. 

The Reign of George the ) began in 1727, ended in 1760, and lasted 

Second ^ So years. 

The Reign of George the ) began in 1760, ended in 1820, and lasted 

Thirtl I 60 years. 

The Reign of George the f began in 1820, ended in 1830, and lasted 

Fourtli \ 10 years. 

Tne Reign of William the ) began in 1830, ended in 1837, and lasted 

Fourth \ 7 years. 

The Reign of Victoria . . . began in 1837, and still continues. (1878.) 



4. First, then, let us notice some of the principal events 
in the history of England during the sixteenth century. 
The sovereigns were Henry VIII., Edward YL, Mary, and 
Elizabeth. At the beginning of this century, England was a 
Roman Catholic coinitry, the power of the Pope and the clergy 
being yet in the ascendant. During the first nineteen years of 
the reign of Henry VHI. he was a devoted servant of the 
papal church. AVhen he ascended the throne, the Pope sent 
him a consecrated golden rose, dipped in holy oil, and perfmned 
with musk, and accompaaicd by the apostolic l)enediction. 
And when Luther commenced the lie formation, Henry wrote 
a book opposing it, which the Pope received with expressions 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA. 



of warm approval, and in consideration of which he bestowed 
on its royal author the title of "Defender of the Faith." Little 
did the Pope imagine that from this same ruler was to come the 

death-blow to the 
papal power in 
England. But in 
15 34 this same 
Henry declared him- 
self the "Head of 
the Church " in his 
dominions. Pie 
caused most of the 
religious institutions 
to be abolished, and 
their wealth confis- 

/^ ""^"^^^iiii ;^ WM'T'iillil?]! ^^-s> cated to the crown. 
I .^r^ii^mmm.^ «./^\t»i« . m^ some of the most 

1)eautiful buildings 
were turned into 
schools and colleges. 
5 . The most noted 
character who fig- 
ured durinof the reiofn 
of Henry VIII. was 
Cardinal Wolsey. 
The rule of England, 
both at home and 
abroad, was, in a great measure, given into his hands. The 
greatest sovereigns of the time, as well as the English 
subject, did wilHng homage to this great potentate. Pie 
was the son of a wealthy butcher ; was educated at Oxford ; 
and rose so rapidly that ho soon become a member of the 
court. "He was made, successively. Bishop of Lincoln, Arch- 
bishop of York, Cardinal, Lord Chancellor, and, iinally. Papal 
Legate. He Avas also Abbot of St. Alban's, Bishop of Bath 
and Wells, which See ho subsequently exchanged for that of 
Durham, and the latter again for Winchester. His equipage 
and attire exceeded iu magnificcnco that of Thomas a Beckct, 
whoso splendor had dazzled a nation in a former age. The 
cardinal's fine figuro was set off with silks and satins of the 
finest texture, and richest scarlet or crimson dye ; his neck 
and shoulders were covered with a tippet of costly sal)lcrj ; his 
gloves were of red silk ; his hat, of a cardinal, was scarlet ; his 




KING IIEXKY VIII. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 67 

shoes "vvcrc of silver-gilt, inlaid "with pearls and diamonds. 

He kept a train of eight hundred persons, 

amongst whom were nine or ten lords, the beggared de- 
scendants of proud barons. He had fifteen knights and forty 
squires. All his domestics were splendidly attired ; his cook 
wore a satin or velvet jacket, and a chain of gold around his 
neck. \\ hen Wolsey appeared in public, his cardinal's hat was 
borne before him by a person of rank. Two priests, the 
tallest and best-looking that could be found, immediately 
preceded him, carrying two ponderous silver crosses ; two 
gentlemen, each bearing a silver staff, walked Iwforc the two 
priests, and in front of all went his pursuivant-at-arms, bearing 
a huge mace of silver-gilt. IMost of his followers were mounted 
upon spirited horses, perfect in training, and richly caparisoned ; 
but he himself, as a priest, rodo on a mule, v.ith saddle and 
saddle-cloth of crimson velvet, and stirrups of silver-gilt. At 
his levee, which he held everyinorning at an early hour, after a 
very short mass, he always appeared elad all in red." But tliis 
great man was doomed to a wretched fall, which was rapid and 
sudden. From the king's displeasure he came finally to be 
charged with treason. He was arrested. This Avas his death- 
blow. He lived not to pass through the Traitor's Gate into the 
Tower. Reaching Leicester A1)bey, on his journey to London, 
he grew too ill to go farther. Dismounting from his mule at the 
door of the convent, where stood the monks with lighted tapers 
to receive him, he said to the abbot: "Father, I am come to 
lay my bones among you." Among Wolsey's dying words 
was the sad, remorseful confession : — 

" Had I but served my God with half the zeal 
I served my kinc:. He Mould not in mine age 
Have left nic naked to mine enemies." 

6. The first wife and queen of Henry VHI. was Katherine 
of Arragon, his brother's widow. The s^ns who had been 
born to the king by his marriage with Katherine had died at 
their birth, or within a few days or hours after it. This cir- 
cumstance awakened in the mind of Henry doubts concerning 
the lawfulness of his marriage with his l)rother's Avidow, and, 
to use his own words, " being troul)led in waves of a scrupu- 
lous conscience, and partly in despair of any male issue by her, 
it drove me at last to consider the estate of this realm, and the 
danger it stood in for lack of issue male to succeed me in this 
imperial dignity." Finally, in 1527, he laid the case before 



08 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

the Pope, appljing for a divorce. The king had ah'eady 
selected the pretty, but unscrupulous, Anne Bolejn, and estab- 
lished her at court as his intended wife. He was secretly 
married to Anne in 1533, and in the following year an eccle- 
siastical court pronounced his marriage with Katherine null and 
void. 

7. A large number of executions clouded the reign of 
Hcnr}^ VIII. Among the most prominent of these were those 
of Sir Thomas Moore, Bishop Fisher, and his own wife, Anne 
Boleyn. The latter left one child, Elizabeth. Immediately 
after Anne's execution the king married Jane Seymour, of 
AVolf Hall, in AViltshire. In 1537, a few days after the birth 
of her son, Prince Edward, the queen, Jane Seymour, died. 
The king next married Anne of Cleves, who, turning out to 
be not so handsome as he was first impressed, procured a 
divorce. He next married Katherine Howard, and this mar- 
riage also proved unhappy. In less than two years she w^as 
found guilty of crimes similar to those which procured Anne 
her death, and she, too, was condemned to die. She suffered 
the sentence on the 15th of February, 1542. Henry's sixth 
and last wife was Lady Katherine Parr, the widow of Lord 
Latimer. She proved a good mother to Henry's three children, 
Mary, Elizabeth, and Edward. The king died in January, 
1547. 

8. Although Henry VIII. had thrown off the supremacy 
of the Pope, he retained many of the papal doctrines ; but 
from his marriage with Anne Boleyn to the death of Jane 
Seymour he was inclined to support the Peformation ; so much 
so that Archbishop Cranmer succeeded in getting his consent 
to an English translation of the Bible. Ho then emploj^ed the 
most learned scholars he could find to make a new translation 
of the Word of God. "This was finished in April of the year 
1539. It Avas printed partly at Paris and partly in London. 
The new Bible was a large folio, adorned Avith a wood-cut, the 
design of the celel)rated painter, Hans Holbein. The engrav- 
ing represents the distributing of the Scriptures to the people, 
and is beautifully executed. When Cranmer received the first 
copies of the holy book, he declared they gave him more joy 
than if he had received ten thousand pounds. 'Cranmer's,' or 
'The Great Bible,' is the name usually given to this transla- 
tion." 

9. Edward VI., the young prince spoken of, succeeded 
Henry on the throne of England. During his reign, and 



EXGLAXD, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



69 



mainly through the efforts of Cranmer, the foundation of the 
Protestant church in England was completed. The Latin 
]\Iass-Book gave place to the English Book of Common Prayer ; 
the worship of images and pilgrimages to shrines were forbid- 
den or discouraged, and finally, in 1552, the Thirty-nine 
Artiplcs of Religion (at first only thirty-two) were established. 




mZABEril'3 EJlOGltESS TO LONDO^C 



" When Mary succeeded her brother, the end and aim of her 
government, almost of her existence, was to restore Pomanisui. 
The result, however, of this cruel and persecuting reign was 
to render England more decidedly Protestant than it had ever 
been before. When Elizabeth came to the throne the great 
mass of the people had abandoned the old religion. This 
queen herself held many of the views belonging to the Church 
of Home, She had a great aversion to married priests, and to 
the. day of her death she kept a crucifix in her chamlxn-. She 
was not a religious jDersecutor, but she checked the spirit of 
Protestant reform, and maintained the church as Cranmer had 
left it. A large class of English subjects, during the persecu- 
tions of Queen Mary's reign, had fled to the continent. There 
they adopted the opinions of Calvin and Zwinglc, who carried 
the Protestant Peformation to a far greater length than the 
English reformers had done. When those exiles returned 
to their native land, on the accession of Elizabeth, they ob- 



70 HISTORY OF DOMIXION OF CAXAD.1, 

jected to the conservative policy of the established church, and 
refused to observe many of the forms of worship retained in 
its ritual. In 1559 a law, called 'The Act of Uniformity,' 
was passed, obliging all English subjects to celebrate divine 
worship according to the forms prescribed in the Book of 
Common Prayer. The Puritans (as they were named in deri- 
sion) refused to obey this law, and in the year 15G() separated 
from the established chui'ch. They were called non-conformisls 
and dissenters, and, as we shall see, the acts agp,inst them, and 
tlie persecutions they endured, increased in severity for the 
next hundred years." 

10. Many distinguished scholars flourished in England dur- 
ing the sixteenth century. The great Cardinal Wolsey was a 
liljeral patron of learning and the fine arts. Of the twenty col- 
leges now at Oxford, six were founded during this period ; and 
of the seventeen at Cambridge no less than eight owe their 
origin to the I3iety or liberal patronage of learning which pre- 
vailed at this time. Later in the century Trinity College, 
Dublin, was founded by Queen Elizabeth. Christ Church, 
Westminster, and the Merchant Tailors' Schools, were also 
established. The first was founded in 1553 by King Edward 
VI. ; the second by Queen Elizabeth, in 1560 ; and the last 
by the Merchant Tailors' Company in 15G8. 

11. This period was also the age in which commerce flour- 
ished. It was the age also of nautical adventure. Bartholomevr 
Columbus presented himself at the court of Henry VII., to 
plead for the discovery of a New World. His brother, the 
illustrious Christopher Columbus, was invited to England ; but 
his long suit at the Spanish court at last ended in success, and 
before Bartholomew returned with the invitation Columbus had 
discovered America for the King of Spain. 

12. The discoveries in America were not overlooked by 
Elizabeth. It was through her patronage that the brave Sir 
Walter Kaleigh, and other distinguished navigators, explored 
the Atlantic coast of the new continent, and took possessien of 
it for England. The queen named the country Virginia, in 
honor of herself, and made many attempts to colonize these 
new possessions. They were unsuccessful, and Elizabeth died 
before the first permanent settlement had been made in the 
colony of the virgin-queen. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 71 



CHAPTER VII. 

CANADA AND ACADIA, ICOO TO 1748. 

1 . In order that I may have the more space for the history 
of English rule in Canada, and still more for an account of 
aftairs since the confederation of 1807, the account of French 
rule (the following) will be condensed as much as possible con- 
sistent with a proper recital of all the facts. We have seen 
how Champlain founded Quebec in 1G08. He found the 
country in possession of a powerful aboriginal nation, called the 
Algonquins. During the first winter which he passed at his 
newdy established post, he engaged in the w^ork of concluding 
a treaty M'ith the natives, in which he was successful. The 
Indians agreed to assist Champlain in conducting an expedition 
through the country of the Iroquois, and the powerful Indian 
nation svith wdiich the newly made friends of Champlain were 
in constant war, on the conditions that the French would lend 
a helping hand in their general cause. In agreeing to their 
proposals, Champlain seemed not to have dreamed of provoking 
a war with the Iroquois, but, in the spring of 1609, when 
he, with two of his countrymen and a strong guard of his 
Indian allies, penetrated their country, he was met with a bold 
front. In the battle which followed the enemy was routed, 
being awed at the havoc made by the unknown instruments 
of destruction in the hands of the French. When Champlain 
returned from this expedition he met sad news. The mer- 
chants of France had declaimed ag;;inst the monopoly of the 
fur trade vested in De Monts, by which the commission of the 
latter was revoked, and Champlain was recalled. On reaching 
France he gave a full and satisfactory account of the new 
country to the king, but w^as unable, even through persistent 
urgency, to obtain a renewal of the monopoly. But his zeal 
for extending his colony was not checked hy this refusal. He 
formed a league with some traders of Rochelle, in 1610, and 
returned to America with considerable reinforcement and 
w'ith fresh supplies. 

2. Upon his return to the newly founded colony, he again 
set out with a party of Algonquins against the Iroquois, in 
which he repeated his former success. "Before taking leave 



72 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

of his allies he prevailed on them to allow one of their young 
men to aeeompaiiy him to France, while, at tlu; sanu; time, a 
Frenchman remained to learn the language of the Indians. 
Having again visited France, in IGll, he returned with the 
Indian youth, whom he designed to employ as interpreter 
between the French and their allies. While awaiting an 
appointment Avhich he had made with his savage friends, he 
})assed the time in selecting a place for a new settlement, 
higher up the river than Quebec. After a careful survey, he 
fixed upon a spot on the southern border of a beautiful island, 
inclosed by the divided channel of the St. Lawrence, cleared 
a considerable space, inclosed it by an earthen wall, and sowed 
some grain. From an (Mninencc in the vicinity, Avhich he 
named Mont lloyal, the place has since been called Montreal." ^ 
3. But the great pioneer again found it necessary to visit 
his native country, — this time for the purpose of laying 
a secure foundation for the execution of his gigantic 
plans of colonization, which he reconnnended to his Indian 
allies. ''lie was so fortunate," says Marcus Willson, "as 
almost immediately to gain the favor of the Count de Sois- 
sons, who obtained the title of Lieutenant General of New 
France, and who, by a formal agreement, delegated to Cham- 
plain ail the functions of that high otlice. The count dying 
soon after, the Frincc of Condo succeeded to all the privileges 
of the deceased, and transferred them to Champlain, on terms 
equally liberal. As his commission included a monopoly of 
the fur trade, the merchants were, as usual, loud in their 
complaints ; but he ende;ivored to remove their principal ob- 
jections, by allowing such as chose to accompany hmi to cjigage 
freely in the trade, on condition that each should furnish six 
men to assist in his projects of discovery, and contribute a 
tAvcntieth of the prolits to defray the expenses of settlement." 
l>ut, on (^lianij)lain's return to New France, he was diverted 
from his grand scheme by an effort to discover the long-hoped- 
for passage to China in the north-west. " A Frenchman," says 
the same author, " who had spent a winter among the northern 
savages, reported that the river of the 7Vlgon(iuins (the Ottawa) 
issued from a hdvc which was connected with the North Sea, 
that he had visited its shores, had there seen the wreck of an 
English vessel, and that one of the crew was still living with 
the Indians. Eager to ascertain the truth of the statement, 

^ Tuttle's History of the Countries of America. 



* ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 73 

Cbamplain dotonnincd to devote a season to the i)r()seciition 
of this irraiul object, and, with only four of his countrymen, 
among M'honi Avas the author of the report and one native, he 
commenced his voyage by the dangerous and ahnost impassable 
route of the Ottawa river." This party, after travelling to 
within eight days' journey of the lake upon which the ship- 
wreck was said to have occurred, discovered the falsity of the 
Frenchman's report through the testimony of the friendly tribe 
Avith whom he had previously lived, and, fearing just punish- 
ment, he confessed that all he had said was untrue. His 
motive in making the statement was to give notoriety to him- 
self, believing that the party could not penetrate the country 
and discover his deception. 

4. Champlain, having once more visited France, and re- 
turned to the colony with additional forces, and being ever 
ready to cnijagc in warlike enterprises with his Indian allies, 
planned, m connection with them, another expedition against 
the Iroquois. This time it was determined to march against 
them in the lake region. The party started tVom Montreal, and 
traversed the course of the Ottawa for some distance, thence 
overland to Lake Huron, where they were reinforced by some 
Huron bauds, Avho regarded the Irocpiois as a connnon enemy. 
On the l)anks of Lake George they found the Iroquois in their 
fortiiications. "The lro(juois at tirst advanced and met their 
assailants in front of the fortifications, but the whizzing balls 
from the fire-arms soon drove them Avithin the ramparts, and, 
finally, from all the outer defences. They continued, however, 
to pour forth showers of arrows and stones, and fought Avith 
such bravery that, in spite of all the exertions of the fcAV French 
and their allies, it Avas found impossible to drive them from 
their stronghold." In the first assault Champlain lost .some 
of his native Avarriors, and he Avas himself severely Avoundcd 
twice. After sevei-al days spcmt in fruitless attemi>ts to dislodge 
the Iro(piois, the French and Indians Avere compelled to retire ; 
but, from the dishonesty and indisposition of his allies, Cham- 
plain was obliged to spend the Avinter in the country of the 
Ilurons, being unable to obtain guides and faciliti(!s to make 
the return journey. But in the following spring (K!!")) he 
was enal)led to leave that region. He sailed for France soon 
after, and reached his native country in September of the same 
year. " The interests of the colony Averc now for some time 
much neglected, owing to the unsettled state of Franc(! during 
the minority of Louis XIII., and it Avas not until 1G20 that 



74 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

Chauiplain was enabled to return, with a new equipment, fitted 
out by an association of merchants. During liis al)seuce the 
settlements had been consideral)ly neglected, and after all that 
had been done for the colony there remained when Avinter set 
in not more than sixty inhabitants, of all ages." 

5. In the spring of 1(521 the association of merchants which 
had fitted out the last expedition was deprived of all its privi- 
leges. Do Caen was sent out as governor of the colony, and 
the power of Champlain was for a time suspended. " The 
violent and arbitrary proceedings of the new governor, how- 
ever, caused much dissatisfaction, in consequence of which a 
great part of the popuhition connected with the European 
traders took their departure. De Caen soon after returning to 
France, the powers of government again fell into the hands of 
Champlain, who turnecl his attention to discoveries and settle- 
ments in the interior." Champlain, soon after his restoration, 
negotiated a treaty between the Iroquois and Hurons, which, for 
a short time only, put a stop to the Avar between those nations. 
From 1622 to li!27, and even later, the progress of the colony 
in New France was checked by the war between the Catholics 
and Protestants in Europe, which extended also to America. 
In the latter year, however, war broke out between England 
and France, and tAVO Calvinists, — refugees from France, — David 
and Lewis Kirk, enlisted in the British service, and engaged in 
an expedition against the French settlements in America. The 
squadron, under the command of these men, sailed to the mouth 
of the St. Lawrence, captured several vessels, and cut olf all 
communication betAveen New France and the mother country. 
Fort Royal and other French settlements in that vicinity soon 
fell into the hands of the English, and, in July, 1G29, Sir David 
Kirk demanded the surrender of Quebec. The [)ost, being 
weakened, yielded, and noAV the French possessions in America 
fell into the hands of the English. But these events had 
scarcely taken place in the New World when, in the Old, articles 
of peace had been signed Avhicli promised the restitution of all 
the conquests made previous to April 14, 1829 ; and, by the 
final treaty of March, 1632, France Avas restored to a possession 
of her American colonies, — not only of New France, but of all 
Acadia. 

6. No sooner Avas the French authority peacefully reex- 
tended over Ncav France, than Champlain Avas reinvested Avith 
his former jurisdiction, A\-hicli he AA-oilhily maintained till his 
death, in 1636. He \\^as succeeded by Montmagny, whose 



I 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 75 

situation was rendered critical by tlio dangerous attitude of the 
Indians. Tlie war witli tlie indomitable Iroquois had broken 
out with greater fury than ever. The French, being themselves 
w^eakened, were unable to render their Algonquin friends any 
assistance ; hence they were humbled ; the Hurons were also 
sorely pressed, and of course the French settlements were in 
danger. The governor, however, succeeded in effecting another 
treaty, and for a time it was observed in comparative peace. 
During this partial peace on the borders the missionaries 
formed establishments not only at Quebec and INIontrcal, but 
penetrated far into the interior, establishing missionary posts, 
coUectinii; the natives in villao-es, and convertinrj them to the 
Catholic faith by thousands. Upwards of three thousand 
Hurons are recorded to have been baptized at one time, and 
though it was easier to make converts than to retain them, yet 
many were for a time reclaimed from their savage habits, and 
very favorable prospects were opened. But this period of re- 
pose was soon ended, the Iroquois having, in 1G48, again de- 
termined to renew the war, and, as it is asserted, without any 
known cause or pretext whatever. 

7. However, the blow was effectual, and the fury of the 
invincible Iroquois was felt throughout Canada. '^ The frontier 
settlements of the French were attacked with the most fatal 
precision, and their inhabitants, without distinction of age or 
sex, involved in indiscriminate slaughter. The Hurons were 
everywhere defeated ; and their country, lately so peaceable and 
flourishing, became a land of horror and of blood. The whole 
Huron nation, Avith one consent, dispersed, and fled for refuge 
in every direction. A few afterwards reluctantly united with 
their conquerors ; the greater number sought an asylum among 
the Chippewas of Lake Superior; Avhilea small renmant soucfht 
the protection of the French at Queljec. The Iroquois having 
completely overrun Canada, the French were virtually blockaded 
in the three forts of Quebec, Three liivers, and Montreal ; and, 
almost every autumn, bands of hostile invaders swept away the 
limited harvests raised in the immediate vicinity of these places. 
Yet again this fierce people, as if satiated with blood, began of 
their own accord to make overtures of peace, and to solicit the 
missionaries to teach them the Christian doctrine. In 1G56 a 
French settlement, connected with a mission, was actually es- 
tablished in the territory of the Onondagas. This establish- 
ment, however, was of short continuance, for, as the other 
confederate tribes disapproved of the measure, the French were 



7G HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

obliged to withdraw. In 1658, the French were compelled to 
accept humiliating terms of peace ; yet even by these means 
they obtained but little repose. Often, while peace was pro- 
claimed at one station, war raged at another. At length, in 
1663, it was announced that deputies from the difierent cantons 
of the Iroquois were on their way to Montreal, with the pro- 
fessed intentif)n of burying the hatchet so deep that it should 
never again l^e dug up, and of planting the tree of peace, 
whose branches should overshadow the Avhole land. But, un- 
happily, a party of Algonquins, stung l)y accumulated wrongs, 
and resolving on vengeance, determined to violate even the 
sacred character of such a mission, and, having an ambuscade, 
killed nearly all the party." Yv^ilh this indiscreet blow all hopes 
of peace disappeared, and the Iroquois renewed the war. 

8. Everywhere before them they sent dismay, and behind 
them they left only devastation and conquest. The Algonquin 
allies of the French either tied or were slain, with not so much 
as an attempt at resistance. While these Indians were extend- 
ing their conquest, the French were helpless within their forts, 
fearing to venture out in defence of their allies. At length, 
harassed by the menaces of the savages, the governor visited 
France to procure aid, but was able to obtain but one hundred 
men. During these extreme hardships a series of earthquakes 
occurred in New France, commencing in February, 1663, and 
continuing for about six months, spreading consternation and 
alarm throughout the colony. In 1665 the ISIarquis de Tracy 
came to Canada as governor, bringing with him quite a large 
numl)er of emigrants and a regiment of soldiers. He pro- 
ceeded to erect three forts on the river Eichelieu (now the 
Sorel), and to conduct several Avell-formed expeditions into the 
country of the Iroquois, eflectually checking their insolence, 
and for a time the colony enjoyed comparative peace. 

9. De Tracy was succeeded by M. de Courcelles, during 
whose administration the French power was extended to the 
interior of Canada and on the upper parts of the St. Lawrence. 
"A settlement of Hurons, under the Jesuit Marquette, was 
established on the Island of Michilimackinac, between Lakes 
Huron and Michigan, — a situation very favorable to the fur 
trade; and the site for a fort Avas selected at Cataraqui, on 
Lake Ontario, near the present village of Kingston, — an advan- 
tageous point for the protection of the trading interests, and for 
holding the Five Nations in awe. Count Frontenac, the suc- 
cessor of De Courcelles, immediately upon his accession 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES, 77 

caused the fort at Cataraqui to l>o complctetl, and it has often, 
from him, been called Fort Frontenac." This governor con- 
ducted the atiairs of the colony in an energetic but haughty 
manner for a period of ten years, when he was recalled, and 
M. Do la Barre-appointed in his stead, in 1084. The latter at 
first made a show of carrying on the war with considerable 
energy, and crossed Lake Ontario Avith a large force, Avhcn, 
being met by deputies from the Five Nations, he thought it most 
prudent to 3'ield to their terms, and Avithdraw his army. The 
home government being dissatislied Avith the issue of this cam- 
paign, the governor \A'as immediately recalled, and, in 1685, 
Avas succeeded by the Marquis Denonville, Avho enjoyed the 
reputation of being a brave and actiA^e ofhcer. 

10. Yv'hateA'er may have been Denonville's pretensions, it 
is cA'ident that his intentions Avere to punish the hostile saA'ages. 
" Having, under various pretexts, allured a number of chiefs to 
meet him on the banks of Lake Ontario, he secured them and 
sent them to France as trophies, and afterwards they Avere sent 
as shiA'es to the galleys. This base stratagem kindled the flame 
of Avar, and each party prepared to carry it on to the utmost 
extremity. Denonville Avas already prepared, and Avith a force 
of eiijlit hundred French re2:ulars, and one thousand three hun- 
dred Canadians and savages, he embarked from Cataraqui, for 
the entrance of the Genesee riA'cr. Immediately after landing, 
he constructed a military defence, in which he left a guard of 
four hundred men, while Avith the main body of his forces ho 
advanced upon the principal town of the Senecas." When ho 
AA^as Avithin a short distance of the village, approaching it, he 
Avas attacked in front and rear l)y a heavy force of the enemy. 
His troops were at tirst thrown into confusion, and for a time 
the battle was fierce and bloody ; but the Iroquois Avere finall}' 
repulsed, and did not again make their appearance in the field. 
Denonville afterwards marched upon their villages, intending 
to destroy them, but they had already been laid in ashes by 
the retreating Senecas. Some fields of corn Avere destroyed, 
but Denonville was unable to do the enemy much damage. 
On his return he stopped at Niagara, Avhere he erected a 
small fort, in Avhich he left a garrison of one hundred men. 
But the expedition had no sooner returned than the Indians 
besieged forts Niagara and Cataraqui. The former Avas a))an- 
doned after nearly all the garrison had perished from hunger. 
The Indian cause now prospered, and had the Indians been 
acquainted Avith the arts of Avar they might have driven the 



78 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



French from the coh)ny. As it was, the governor in 1G88, 
■\vas compelled to submit to the most humiliating terms, and to 
send a request to France for the return of the chiefs whom he 
had captured and sent to that far-ofi' country. 

11. The treaty thus made was almost immediately broken 
by the Iroquois, who were now so exasperated as to seize upon 
the slightest pretext for war. Among their more desperate 
onslaughts was that upon the Island of Montreal, which they 

devastated, carrying off 
two hundred prisoners. 
In the most critical 
hour Denonville was re- 
called and Count Fron- 
tenac reappointed gov- 
ernor. He reached the 
colony in 1G89, and at- 
tempted to conclude a 
peace with the Iroquois ; 
but they were too much 
elated over their own 
victories to listen to any 
proposal ; hence the 
governor prepared for 
war. "As France and 
England," says Marcus 
Willson, "were now en- 
gaged in war, in con- 
sequence of the Eng- 
lish revolution of 1088, 
Frontenac resolved to 
strike the first blow 
against the English, on 
whose support the en- 
^ ^ ^ emv so strongly relied. 

<^oLBERT. LriGOO he fitted out 

three expeditions ; one against New York, a second against New 
Hampshire, and a third against the province of Maine. The 
party destined for New York fell upon Corlaer, or Schenectady, 
and completely surprised, pillaged, and l)urned the place. The 
second party burned the village of Salmon Falls, on the bor- 
ders of New Hampshire, and the third destroyed the settlement 
of Casco, in Maine. The old allies of the French, reassured 
by these successes, began to resume their former energy ; the 




ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 79 

rcmoto post of Micliiliiiiackinac was strengthened, and the 
Freneh were giadually gaining ground, wiien, from a new 
quarter, a storm arose which threatened the very existence of 
their power in America. The northern English colonies, 
roused by the atrocities of the French and their savage allies, 
hastily prepared two expeditions against the French, one by 
sea, from Boston against Quebec, and the other by land, from 
New York against Montreal. The lirst, under Sir William 
Phipps, captured all the French posts in Acadia and New- 
foundland, with several on the 8t. Lawrence, ^and had arrived 
within a few days' sail of Quebec before any tidings of its 
approach had been received. The fortiiications of the city 
were hastily strengthened, and when the summons to surrender 
was received, it was returned with a message of dctiance. 
After an unnecessary dehiy of two days, a landing was effected ; 
but the attacks both by land and l)y water Avere alike unsuc- 
cessful, and the English were linally reduced to tlie mortifying 
necessity of abandoning the place, and leaving their cannon and 
ammunition in the hands of the enemy. The expedition 
against Montreal was alike unsuccessful. In 1691 the settle- 
ments on the Sorel were attacked by the Mohawks and Eng- 
lish, under the command of Major Schuvler, Avho, after makins: 
hard attempts, were compelled to w^ithdraw. This left the 
Governor of New France without any fears for the safety of the 
colony. 

12. Several years of political strife now ensued, but, when 
the insolence of the savages could be endured no longer, Fron- 
tentic marched a large force into their country. He left ^lon- 
treal in the summer of 109(3, and proceeded to Fort Frontenac, 
from whence he marched to the country of the Onondagas, 
when he found the enemy had retreated, having first burned 
their villages. Ho was sorely harassed in their retreat. The 
Indians continued the war until the conclusion of peace between 
France and England, when they negotiated a treaty with the 
French. Frontenac died in 1G98, and was succeeded by Cal- 
lieres. But in 1702 war again broke out between France and 
iiiuglana, inv^olving, of course, the American colonies. The 
French, on the one hand, in Europe, suffered defeat, which 
rendered it impossible for that nation to send the needed assist- 
ance to New France ; while, on the other hand, the English, 
elated with repeated triumphs, eml)raccd the design of con- 
quering the French colony in America. The Iroquois, although 
repeatedly solicited by both parties, maintained neutrality. 



80 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



The French directed their operations mainly against the New 
England colonies. At length, however, the English, wearied 
of unsuccess, prepared a powerful armament, under the com- 
mand of Sir Horenden AValker, for the reduction of Canada ; 
but, fortunately for the French, the squadron was wrecked 
near the mouth of the St. LaAvrence. Meanwhile the French 
were having a terrible struggle in the west with the Outaga- 
mies, or Foxes, who projected a plan for the destruction of 
Detroit, and in which they failed only after many signs of suc- 
cess. Retreating from Detroit, the Foxes collected their forces 
on the Fox river of Green Ba}', where they strongly fortitied 
themselves ; but an expedition l)eing sent against them they 
Averc obliged to capitulate. The remnant of the defeated 
nation, however, long carried on a ceaseless and harassing 
warfare against the French, and rendered insecure their com- 
munication Aviththe settlements on the Mississippi. 

13. The Treat}^ of Utrecht, in 1713, put an end to hostilities 
in America, after which, or until the Avar in AA'hich Canada fell, 
the colony enjoyed comparative peace. Charlevoix, Avho visited 

the principal settle- 
ments in 1720 and 
1721, gives the best 
account of their con- 
dition at this period. 
Quebec then con- 
tained a population 
of al)out seven thou- 
sand inha))itants, but 
the entire population 
of the colony at that 
period is unknoAvn. 
The settlements were 
contined principally 
to the borders of the 
St. LaAvrence, be- 
tAveen Montreal and 
Quebec, extending a 
short distance below 
the latter place. 
Above Montreal Avere 
only detached sta- 
tions for defence and 
At Fort Frontenac and Niagara a few soldiers were 




CHARLEVOIS. 



trade. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STxlTES. 81 

stalioned, but there were apparently no traces of cultivation 
in the vicinity of cither of those places. A feeble settlement 
was found at Detroit, and 6ne at Michilimackinac, surrounded 
by Indian villages. On the whole, however, it appears that 
west of IMontrcal there was nothing at this time Vvdiich could 
be called a colony. 

14. But let us turn from the valley of the St. Lawrence for 
a few moments, and bring forward the history of Acadia. A\'e 
have already seen how, in 1G05, under the leadership of 
De Monts, the tirst permanent settlement was made in Nova 
Scotia. The settlement was named Port Koyal, and the whole 
country, eml)racing New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and the 
adjacent islands, vras called Acadia. Tiio settlement at Port 
Royal was invaded, in 1(314, by Samuel Argall, under the 
authority of the colony of Virginia, and reduced, which com- 
pleted the conquest of Acadia by the British. France made no 
complaint of ArgalTs aggression, beyond demanding the restor- 
ation of the prisoners, nor did Britain take any immediate 
measures for retaining her conquests. But, in 1621, Sir Wil- 
liam Alexander, afterwards Earl of Stirling, obtained from the 
king, James I., a grant of Nova Scotia and the adjacent islands, 
and in 1625 the commission was renewed by Charles I., and 
extended so as to embrace all Canada and the northern portions 
of the United States. 

15. In 1623 a vessel was despatched with settlers ; but they 
found the whole country in the possession of the French, and 
were obliged to return to England without foundinor a settle- 
ment. In 1628, while the war with France was in progress,. 
Sir David Kirk, who had been sent out for that purpose,, 
succeeded in reducing Nova Scotia, and not only so, but in the 
following year, as we have seen, succeeded in the conquest of 
all Canada ; but the whole country was restored to the French 
by tlie treaty of 16.3'2. At this time the French court divided 
Nova Scotia between three individuals, La Tour, Denys, and 
Rozillai, and appointed the latter commander-in-chief of the 
colony. He was succeeded by Charnise, between whom and 
La Tour a quarrel arose, which caused great trouble. At 
length Charnise died, and the trouble was for a time suppressed 
by La Tour's marrying the widow of his enemy ; but, not long 
after, a creditor of Charnise appeared, named La Bargne, and 
with an armed force endeavored to reduce Denys and La Tour. 
He overcame several important posts, and was marching against 
St. John when a formidable opposition put a stop to his con- 



82 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

quests. Cromwell had assumed the reins of government, and 
in 1654 England declared war against France, and despatched 
an expedition against JSova Scotia, which met with success, 
bringiiig the whole country under England. La Tour sub- 
mitted to the new joke, and, in connection \vith Sir Thomas 
Zemple, obtained a grant of the greater portion of the penin- 
sula. Sir Thomas l)ought out La Tour soon after, and spent 
thirty thousand dollars in fortifications, which greatly improved 
the commerce of the country. But all his fair prosj^ects were 
swept away by the treaty of Breda, in 1667, by which Nova 
Scotia was again ceded to France. 

16. The French at once took possession of the colon}", 
wiiicli as yet contained no very large settlements, the i)opu- 
lation in 1680 not exceeding nine hundred. The fisheries, the 
only prolitable industry, were conducted by the English. The 

forts w^erc few and weak, and 
two of them were plundered 
by pirates. In this situation, 
M'hen the war broke out in 

1689, Acadia appeared an 
easy conquest, and the 
achievement of this was given 
to Massachusetts. " In May, 

1690, Sir William Phipps, 
with seven hundred men, ap- 
peared before Port Royal, 
M'hich soon surrendered ; but 
he merely dismantled the for- 
tress, and then left the country 
a prey to pirates. A French 
commander arriving in No- 
A'eml)er of the following year, 
the country Avas reconquered 

simply by pulling down the English and hoisting the 
French tlag. Soon after, the Bostonians, aroused by the 
depredations of the French and Indians on the frontiers, sent 
out a body of five hundred men, who soon regained the 
W'hole country, with the exception of one fort on the ri^'cr St. 
John. Acadia now remained in the possession of the English 
until the treaty of Ilys wick, in 1697, when it was again restored 
to France." 

17. The peace of 1697 was soon followed l)y war. "War 
was declared against France and Spain, and it was again 




gill "WILLIAJI rEPPEKliLL. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 83 

resolved to reduce Nova Scotia, and again the undertaking was 
intrusted to Massachusetts. This time the invading party was 
assured that what was gained l)y arms would not lie sacrificed 
by treaty. "The tirst expedition, despatched in 1704, met 
with little resistance, but did little more than ravage the 
country. In 1707 a force of one thousand soldiers was sent 
against Port Eoyal ; but the French conuiiandant conducted the 
defence of the place with so much ability that the assailants 
were obliged to retire with considerable loss. In 1710 a much 
larger force, under the command of Gen. Nicholson, appeared 
before Port Royal ; but the French commandant, having but 
a feeble garrison, and declining to attempt a resistance, ob- 
tained an honorable capitulation. Port Iloyal was now named 
Annapolis. From this period Nova Scotia has been perma- 
nently annexed to the British crown." Cape Breton, however, 
remained in the hands of the French. 

18. But to return to Canada. Count Frontcnac was suc- 
ceeded by M. de Callieres in the winter of IGUS. The latter 
died in 1703, and was succeeded by the Marquis de Vaudreuil. 
There was now a return of peace, and consequently a return of 
prosperity. The governor set himself at work to develop the 
resources of the country, and to encourage education among 
the people. He also extended the fortifications of Quebec, and 
put Montreal in a better state of defence. Thus he employed 
himself till his death, in 1725. After a year, during which time 
the government was administered by Baron de Lorguenil, he 
was succeeded by the jMarquis do Beauharnois. "By order of 
the king, and with a view still further to counteract the efforts 
of the British traders, De Beauharnois strengthened the forts at 
Frontenac and Niagara. Governor Burnet, of New York (son 
of Bishop Burnet of England), resolved, in 1727, to neutralize 
the design of the marquis by erecting another fort, midway be- 
tAveen Frontenac and Niagara, at Oswego. He also had an act 
passed by the Assembly of New York, subjecting any French 
trader to heavy loss who would supply the Iroquois with goods. 
As an act of retaliation the few English residents at Montreal 
were peremptorily exiled ; and, contrary to existing treaties, the 
new French fort of St. Frederic was erected at Crown Point, on 
Lake Champlain, and a settlement formed there. With a view 
to punish the predatory acts of the western Indians, M. de 
Beauhirnois, in 1728, despatched a large force to Chicago, by 
way of the river Ottawa, Lake Nipissing, and the French river. 
The expedition was highly successful, and penetrited within a 



84 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

comparatively short distance of the upper Mississippi. Efforts 
were also more or less successfully made by French agents to 
detach the Iroquois from the English. As their territory lay 
between the English and French colonies, and formed a barrier 
between them, the Iroquois could act against either. It was, 
therefore, important for both colonies to secure either their 
cooperation, or their neutralit^^" 

Id. The French made several inroads along the frontier line 
of Canada from Boston to Albany, and greatly harassed the 
English settlements. The heroic defence, by Sergeant Hawks, 
of one of the English posts against an attack from Crown Point by 
De Vaudreuil, culled forth the admiration of both sides ; while 
the barbarous treatment of the Keith family by the St. Francis 
Indians, at Hoosac, near Alljany, caused a feeling of the deepest 
resentment. The colonists were roused, and each one vied 
^vith the other in setting on foot an expedition for the conquest 
of Canada. Troops were promised from England ; but, as they 
never came, the expedition had to be abandoned. At length 
the treaty of Aix-la-Chapclle, in 1748, put an end to these 
desultory contests, and both countries restored the respective 
territories w^hich had been taken by them during the war. 



CHAPTER VIII. 

CANADA AND ACADIA, FROM 1748 TO 1760. 

1. The Marquis de la Jonquiere was appointed to succeed 
Beauharnois as Governor of Canada, but being captured on 
his w^ay out, the Count de la Galissonniere was ap^Dointed 
in his stead, and administered the affairs for about two 
years ; then the marquis, being released, took the reins. 
The latter was succeeded by the Marquis du Quesne, in 
1752, and the latter again by the Marquis de Vaudreuil, in 
1755. These several governments were marked by disturb- 
ances with the English colonists, which culminated during the 
administration of the latter in the linal grand struggle in which 
Canada passed permanently into the hands of the English. 
Until that struggle came there was nothing ve.ry remarkable 
in the affairs of Canada. In Nova Scotia, in 1744, when war 
broke out again between France and England, the French 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 85 

Governor of Capo Breton immediately attempted the con- 
quest of Nova Scotia. He reduced Canso, and laid siege to 
Annapolis, but was unsuccessful. The English, on the con- 
trary, succeeded in taking Louisburg, the then Gibraltar of 
America ; ])ut when peace was concluded, by the Treaty of Aix- 
la-Chapelle, in 1748, the island of Cape Breton v\'as restored 
to France. After this treaty Nova Scotia began to be the 
object of attention of England. The peninsula had hitherto 
been settled almost exclusively by the French. In order to 
introduce a greater proportion of English settlers, it was pro- 
posed to colonize in Nova Scotia a large number of the 
soldiers who had lieen discharged in consequence of the disband- 
ing of the army ; and in the latter part of June, 1749, a com- 
pany of nearly four thousand adventurers of this class was added 
to the population of the colony. To every soldier were given 
fifty acres of land, with ten additional acres for every member 
of his family. Officers had a larger allowance, and every 
person above a captain received six hundred acres, with pro- 
portionate increase for the members of families. These settlers 
were conveyed free of expense, and furnished with ammuni- 
tion, and with utensils for clearing; their lands and erectins; 
dwellings, and were maintained twelve months at the expense 
of the government. 

2. The emigrants were landed at Chel)ucto Harbor, under 
the charge of the Hon. Edward Cornwallis, whom the king 
had appointed their governor. At this place they at once com- 
menced the ])uilding of the town of Halifax, which was named 
in honor of the nobleman who had the greatest share in found- 
ing the colony. The place selected for the new town contained 
the advantages of one of the finest harbors in America. The 
colony "was considered of so great importance to England 
that Parliament continued to make annual grants for it, which, 
in 1755, had amounted to the enormous sum of nearly t^vo 
millions of dollars ; but, although the English settlers were 
thus firmly established, they soon found themselves unpleas- 
antly situated. The limits of Nova Scotia had never been 
defined, l)y the treaties between France and England, with 
sufficient clearness to prevent disputes about boundaries, and 
each party was now striving to obtain possession of a territory 
claimed l)y the other. The government of France contended 
that the British dominion, according to the treaty Avhich ceded 
Nova Scotia, extended only over the present peninsula of the 
same name ; while, according to the English, it extended over 



86 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

all that large tract of country formerly known as Acadia, in- 
cluding the present province of New Brunswick. Admitting 
the English claim, France would be deprived of a portion of 
territory of great value to her, materially alfecting her control 
over the river and gulf of St. Lawrence, and greatly endan- 
gering the security of her Canadian possessions." 

o. No sooner was it apparent that the English intended to 
colonize the whole peninsula, than the French, jealous of their 
former enemies, sought to prejudice the Indians against them, 
" in the hope of effectually preventing the English from ex- 
tending their plantations, and, perhaps, of inducing them to 
abandon their settlements entirely. The Indians even made 
attacks upon Halifax, and the colonists could not move into 
the adjoining Avoods, singly or in small parties, without danger 
of being shot and scalped, or taken prisoners. In support of 
the French claims, the Governor of Canada sent detachments, 
which, aided by strong bodies of Indians and a few French 
Acadians, erected the fort of Beau Sejour on the neck of the 
peninsula of Nova Scotia, and another on the river St. John, 
on pretence- that these places were within the government of 
Canada. Encouraged by these demonstrations, the French 
inhabiiants around the bay of Chignecto rose in open rebellion 
against the Euglish government, and in the spring of 1750 the 
Governor of Nova Scotia sent Maj. Lawrence with a few men 
to reduce them to obedience. At his approach the French 
abandoned their dwellings, and placed themselves undej' the 
protection of the commandant of Fort Beau Sejour, when 
Lawrence, linding the enemy too strong for him, was obliged 
to return without accomplishing his object."' Not long after, 
Maj. Lawrence was again sent out with one thousand men ; but 
after doing the enemy but little harm he was obliged to retire. 
To keep the French in subjection, the English built a fort on 
the narrow strip of land near the isthmus, connecting the 
peninsula with New Brunswick, which they called Fort Law- 
rence. The French erected additional forts in the disputed 
territory, and vessels, with troops and military stores, Avere 
sent to Canada and Cape Breton, until the English became 
alarmed at the critical situation in Avhich they were placed. 

4. But in 1755 Admiral Boscawen commenced the war Avhich 
had long been anticipated by both parties, by capturing on the 
coast of Newfoundland two French vessels, with eight com- 
panies of soldiers on board, and about thirty-five thousand 
dollars in specie. With commencement of hostilities, a force 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 87 

was sent out from New England, under Cols. Monckton and 
Winslow, to dislodge the enemy, and possess their newly-l)uilt 
fortiiications. The troops set out from Boston on the 2i)tli of 
May, and after a safe voyage anchored in Chigneeto Bay, a1)out 
five miles from Fort Lawrence. On arriving at the river, then 
called JNIarsaquah, they found their progress opposed by the 
enemy, tour hundred and fifty of whom occupied a block house 
while the others were secui'cly posted behind a heavy l)reastwork 
of timber. Having dislodged both of these forces. Col. Monck- 
ton advanced to Fort Beau Sejour, which he subdued after four 
days' hard fighting. "He changed the name of the fort to that 
of Fort Cumberland, and left it in charge of a British garrison. 
He then reduced another French post, on the Gaspereau river, 
which flows into Bay Veste. Here he obtained a large store 
of provisions and stores. The success of this expedition was 
in producing tranquillity in all Acadia, then claimed by the 
English, and called Nova Scotia. 

5. But the situation of the people of Nova Scotia at this 
time Avas full of danger. The war in Europe opened adverse 
to the British arms, and Braddock had been defeated in his 
invasion of the French outposts in the north-west. The French 
cause seemed to prosper, and it was believed that Nova Scotia 
would be invaded. At this time tlie French Acadians amounted 
to eighteen thousand. ^' They had," says an eminent writer, 
" cultivated a considerable extent of land, possessed about sixty 
thousand head of cattle, had neat and comfortable dwellings, 
and lived in a state of plenty, but of great simplicity. They 
were a peaceful, industrious, and amiable race, governed 
mostly by their pastors, who exercised a parental authority 
over them ; they cherished a deep attachment to their native 
country, they had resisted every invitation to bear arms against 
it, and had invariably refused to take the oath of allegiance to 
Great Britain. Although the great body of these people re- 
mained tranquilly occui)ied in the cultivation of their lands, yet a 
few individuals had joined the Indians, and about three hundred 
w^ere taken in the forts, in open rebellion against the govern- 
ment of the country. Under these circumstances, Governor 
Lawrence and his council, aided l)y Admirals Boscawen and 
Mostyn, assembled to consider what disposal of the Acadians 
the security of the country required. Their decision resulted 
in the determination to tear the whole of this peoi)le from their 
homes, and disperse them through the different British colonies, 
where they would bo unable to unite in any offensive measures, 



88 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

and Avlicrc they might in time Ijccomo naturalized to the gov- 
ernment. Their lands, lionses, and cattle were, without any 
alk^ged crime, declared to l)e forfeited; and they were allowed 
to carry Avith them only their money and household furniture, 
both of extremely small amount. Treachery was necessary to 
render this tyrannical scheme eifective. The inhabitants of 
each district were commandcid to meet at a certain place and 
day on urgent business, the nature of which was carefully con- 
cealed from them; and when they were all assembled the 
dreadful mandate was pronounced, and only small parties of 
them were allowed to return for a short time to make the 
necessary preparations. They appear to have listened to their 
doom with unexpected resignation, making only mournful and 
solemn appeals, which were wholly disregarded. AViieu, how- 
ever, the moment of embarkation arrived, the young men who 
were placed in front absohit<dy refused to move ; and it 
required files of soldiers, with fixed bayonets, to secure 
obedience. No arrangements had ))ocn made for their location 
elsewhere, nor was any compensation offered for the property 
of which they were deprived. They were merely thrown on 
the coast at different points, and compelled to trust to the 
charity of the inhabitants, who did not allow any of them to 
be absolutely starved. Still, through hardships, distress, and 
change of climate, a great proportion of them perished. So 
eager was their desire to return, that those sent to Georgia 
had set out, and actually reached New York, when they were 
arrested. They addressed a pathetic representation to the 
English government, in which, quoting the most solemn treaties 
and declarations, they proved that their treatment had been as 
faithless as it was cruel. No attention, however, was paid to 
this document, and so guarded a silence was preserved by the 
government of Nova Scotia upon the subject of the removal 
of the Acadians, that the records of the province make no 
allusion Avhatever to the event. Notwithstanding the bar- 
barous diligence with which this mandate was executed, it is 
supposed that the number actually removed from the province 
did not exceed seven thousand. The rest fled into the depths 
of the ffU'ests or to the nearest French settlements, enduring 
incredible hardships. To guard against the return of the hap- 
less fugitives, the government reduced to ashes their habitations 
and property, laying Avaste even their own lands AA'ith a fury 
exceeding that of the most savage enemy. In one district two 
hundred and thirty-six houses Avere at once in a blaze. The 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



89 



xVcadians, from the liciirt of the woods, bolicld all tlioy pos- 
sessed coiisiii'iicd to destruction ; 3'et they made no movement 
till the devastatoi's wantonly set their cha[)el on lire. They 
then rushed forward ia desperation, killed about thirty of the 
incendiaries, and then hastened buck to their hiding-places." 

6. At the close of the French and Indian War, France 
was compelled to yield her possessions" in North America to the 
English, and now the English government of the Province of 
Nova Scotia did all in its power to promote the general pros- 
perity of the settlements; but, after the fullest exertions had 
been made, the dreadful blank made by the banishment of the 
French was painfully visible. After the peace the French Avero 
allowed to return to their old homes and occupy lands, on taking 
the customary oaths ; but no compensation was offered them for 
the property of which they had been plundered. However, a fcvv^ 
did return, and in 1772, out of a French ])opu]ation of eigh- 
teen thousand, that once occupied portions of Nova Scotia, but 
two thousand remained. It should have l)een mentioned l)eforc, 
that in 1758, during the administration of Gov. Lawrence, a 
legislative assembly was given to the people of Nova Scotia ; 
and, also, that in 1761 a treaty was made with the Indians, 
by which they agreed to forever bury the hatchet, and to ac- 
cept George III., instead of the King of France, as their great 
father. 

7. The Marquis de Vaudreuil, who succeeded Du Qucsne 
in 1755, was the last of the French governors in Canada. His 
long administration Avas ))rought to a close with the conquest 
of the English, iil 1759. With tlu; commence- 
ment of his administration allairs between the 
French and English colonies Avore growing 
serious. In the crisis En<2:land aided her colo- 
nies Avith men and money, and sent out Gen- 
eral Braddock to su[)erintend the campaign. 
He adopted measures for the capture of all 
the Avx'stern French outposts, but the French 
prepared to resist the IjIoav. " Braddock 
arrived in Virginia in February, 1755, and ^jf^l 
in April assembled the provincial goA'crnoi's 
at Alexandria to plan the campaign. At this - - ^ , ,,^y^^^ 
conference four expeditions Avere planned. 

The first, imder General Lawrence, was de- ^enevai Braddoa-. 
signed to reduce Nova Scotia ; the second, under Braddock, to 
recover the Ohio valley; the third, under Governor Shirley, 




9U 



IIISTOrvY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 




Fort du Qiiesne. 

clrcd troops, 



to capture Fort Niagara; and the fourth, under Johnson, to 
take Fort St. Frederic (Crown Point). Braddock set out in 
June with twelve hundred men, and a reserve of one 
thousand more, to take Fort du Quesne, in Ohio, lie was 
accompanied hy Washington, as colonel of his 
statf. It Avas a month before he reached the 
Ohio. When within a few miles of the fort he 
was attacked by JNl. de Beaiijeu, the command- 
ant, with two hundred and lifty Canadians and 
six hundred Indians in ambuscade. A panic 
ensued, and Braddock was defeated with a 
loss of eight hundred out of his twelve hun- 
and all his artillery and stores. His officers 
behaved nol)ly. He himself had hve horses shot under him, 
when he received a mortal wound, and died in a few daj^s." 
This victory ended that campaign, and assured to the French 
the possession of the valley of the Ohio for the time. Gov- 
ernor Shirley, in consequence, abandoned his attack on Niagara. 
The other expeditions, however, Avere 
prosecuted Avitli considerable vigor. In 
the mean time France was preparing to 
help her colony, and sent out General 
Dieskau Avith a large force. "Hoping to 
rival the success Avhich had attended the 
French arms in Ohio, he lost no time in 
marching from Fort St. Frederic (CroAvn 
Point) to attack the advancing colunms of 
the British i)rovincial militia, Avliich had 
been collected under Gen. Johnson, in the 
vicinitA' of Lake Georijc Leaving- half of his force at Carillon 
(Ticonderoga), (Avhere a very strong new French fort had been 
erected this year), Dieskau came up Avith a detachment of Gen. 
Johnson's men under Col. Williams. Forming an ambuscade, 
he attacked and scattered the British force, killing its leader. 
Col. AVilliams. He then pushed on to attack Johnson's chief 
post, at Fort Edward (Hudson riA^er), AAdiich had just been con- 
structed by Gen. Lyman. In this he entirely failed, — Johnson 
being too Avell posted at Fort William Henry (at the head of 
Lake George), and his own force being too small. Dieskau, in 
attacking AVilliam Henry, Avas Avounded and taken prisoner, and 
his men forced to retreat. For Col. Johnson's proAvess in this 
battle he Avas knighted by the king." 

8. As the contest Availed hotter the contestants extended 




Tort Niagara. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. Vl 

their preparations. A council of war was held in New York 
by the English, and a plan adopted. Meanwhile the French 
King, Louis XV., determined to despatch M. Montcalm, one 
of the ablest generals, to Canada early in 175G. ]Montcalm was 
accompanied by General de Levis, M. do Bourgainville, and 
fourteen thousand men, provisions, war materials, and money. 
George II. was equally prompt. With Gen. Abercromliy and 
a large reinforcement, he sent out the Earl of Loudoun as 
Governor of Virginia and generalissimo. The House of Com- 
mons also voted one hundred and tifteen thousand pounds 
sterling to raise and equip the colonial militia. With a view 
to conciliate the Iroquois and secure their cooperation, Sir 
William Johnson was, at their request, appointed "sole super- 
intendent of the Six Nations and other Northern Indians," and 
the various provinces vrere required to transact all business 
relating to the Indians through him. 

9. The progress of the war was not without some thrilling 
incidents, among other things a daring feat was performed by 
Capt. Iiogers, of the English colonials. Leaving the head of 
Lake George with fifty men in live boats, he stealthily glided 
down the lake, and then carried the boats overland to Lake 
Champlain. Eowing by night, and lying concealed by day 
(often within hearing of the passing boats of the French), he 
passed Forts Ticonderoga and St. Frederic, until he came to 
where the supply schooners of the eneni}^, on their way to the 
forts, were lying at anchor. Rogers suddenly attacked and cap- 
tured them. Then, abandoning his boats and securing his pris- 
oners he marched them by land to Fort William Henry, at 
the head of Lake George. This exploit worked considerable 
damage to the French. Meanwhile Col. Bradstreet managed, 
in a very skilful manner, in conducting reinforcements from 
Schenectady to Oswego. However, Col. Bradstreet's rein- 
forcements were not sufficient. Montcalm marched against 
the fort with a strong force, and, after a brief attack, he com- 
pelled his enemies to abandon Fort Ontario. This was on the 
12th of August. The English retreated to the opposite side of 
the river, to Fort Oswego. This fort was also surrounded, as 
its conmiandant, Col. Mercer, was killed. " So exasperated 
were the Indian allies of the French at the loss of so many of 
their warriors, that IMontcalm had to shoot down six of them 
before they would desist from scalping the prisoners. To con- 
ciliate the Iroquois, Avho looked with jealousy upon the British 
fort in their territory, he destroyed the fort, and returned to 



92 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 




git "William Johuson. 



Frontenac in triumph, with one thousand four lunidred pris- 
oners (Avho were sent to Montreal),' one hundred thirty-four 
cannon, and a hirge amount of military stores. The victory 
was a most important one for the French, and added so much to 
tlieir prestige among the Iroquois, that at their solicitation a 
deputation from each of the cantons (except the Mohawk) 
went to ]Montreal to conchide a treaty of peace with De 
Vaudrcuil, the governor. Sir ^Yilliam John- 
son set vigorously at work to counteract this 
fatal influence. By the aid of his faithful 
friends, the jNIohawks, he was partially suc- 
cessful, and despatched several war parties 
to harass the enemy. The capture of Oswego 
had the farther eifect of preventing any 
ifW'^'^^^^ /' "-X hostile movements on the part of the English 
conmiander during the remainder of the 
year." 

10. The campaign of 175G was still more successful for the 
French arms, and in that of 1757 the French won many brill- 
iant victories. Montcalm reduced Fort AVilliam Henry. How- 
ever, the campaign of 1758 paved the Avay for the hnal victory 
to English arms. " Gen. Lord Loudoun, the commander-in- 
chief, havinir failed to act either with iudo^ment or encrofv, was 
superseded l)y Gen. Al)ercroml)y ; and, in other respects, the 
British cal)inet, under the guidance of the elder Pitt, evinced 
its determination to prosecute the war with unusual vigor. 
Circular letters were addressed to each of the colonies in INIarch, 
oflering I'oj^al troops and warlike material in abundance, pro- 
vided they would select officers and raise such additional men 
among themselves as might oe required. 
Also, as a mark of favor, provincial colonels 
were raisedto the rank of brigadier-generals 
and lieutenant-colonels to that of colonels. 
So heartily were these circulars responded 
to that in two months twenty thousand colo- 
nial troops were sent to Albany, equipped 
and officered, ready to take the field. On 
the part of the royal forces sent out from 
England, the campaign in 1758 was signal- 
ized by the gallant and memorable capture 
of Louisburg, the fortified capital of Cape 
Breton ; but on the part of the colonial forces and the regular 
troops, under Gen. Aljercromby, it proved a disgraceful failure. 




Qoiieral Abercromby. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 93 

In July Abercromby decided to proceed down Lake George and 
attack jNIontcahn at Ticonderoga. The youthful and gallant 
Lord Howe was, however, the real soul of the expedition ;" but 
he was killed in a slight skirmish soon after the landing, 
, which so disheartened Abercromby that he Avithdrew his 
whole army. But the rangers, under Col. Bradstrcet and 
Capt. Rogers, pushed forward and gained a good position. 
Abercromby now advanced, but the attack was mismanaged 
and proved a disgraceful failure. Col. Bradstreet, how- 
ever, importuned the general for a sufficient force to reduce 
Fort Frontenac. This was at length granted. Bradstreet lost 
no time in joining Gen. Stanwix at the new fort which he 
was then erecting at the Oneida portage (now Rome), on the 
Mohawk river. With two thousand seven hundred provincials, 
which Gen. Stanwix had given him, and about tifty Iroquois, 
under Red Head and Capt. J. Butler, he crossed the lake in open 
boats, and in two days after reaching the fort compelled the 
commander to capitulate. Thus was Col. Bradstreet's heroic 
enterprise crowned with complete success ; and all the stores 
and shipping of the enemy fell into his hands. Great rejoicing 
followed this important victory ; for it was felt that, with the 
fall of Fort Frontenac, was destroyed Montcalm's power against 
the English on the great lakes. The noble ]\Iontcalm was 
chagrined, but not discouraged; for, said he, "We are still 
resolved to find our graves under the ruins of the colony." On 
hearing of Abercromby 's disaster, Gen. Amherst brought five 
regiments from Louisbourg, by w^ay of Boston, to reinforce 
him. He then returned to his army. The remainder of the 
campaign Avas chiefly favorable to the British. To Gen. Forbes 
was entrusted the reduction of Fort du Quesne in the Ohio 
valley. Contrary to the advice of some provincial officers, 
Forbes sent forward an advance party under Col. Bouquet, 
part of which fell into an ambuscade, and was completely 
routed. Forbes himself supposed that the enemy was too 
strong to be successfully attacked, and had loitered so long on 
the way that, had it not been for Col. Washington, no attack 
on the fort would have been attempted that season. The 
garrison, however, was found to be so weak that on the ap- 
proach of the Virginians the French commander destroyed the 
fort, and retired in great haste and confusion doAvn the Ohio to 
the jMississippi. In honor of the British premier, the fort 
abandoned by the French Avas repaired, and named Fort Pitt 
(now Pittsburg). 



94 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 




Montcalm. 



11. Our greatest interest, however, must attach to the final 
campaign of 1759. General Amherst had succeeded Amber- 
crom))y. The French busied themselves in making prepara- 
tions, and making the ])est possil)lG disposition of their forces. 
The British made a threefold plan : first, General Prideanx 
was to attack Niagara ; second, General Amherst was to besiege 
Ticonderoga ; and, thirdly. General Wolfe was to attack 

Quebec. General Prideaux set out in 
July, and, aided by Sir William John- 
son and a body of Iroquois, captured 
Fort Niagara'; and by this stroke fell 
the last of that chain of forts which had 
so long connected Canada with Louisi- 
ana. General Amherst was successful 
without a battle, the enemy fleeing be- 
fore him. But the great contest was 
waged between Generals Wolfe and 
INlontcalm, at Quebec. The former was 
abl}" su})ported by Generals Monckton, 
Townsend, and Murray. He had a 
large naval force, and eight thousand 
troops. It is needless to give a description of the contest here ; 
the l>attle of the " Plains of Abraham " is too w^ell known to need 
repetition ; hence I omit to give the details of one of the grand- 
est military feats in the whole of Canadian history. Wolfe, 
having arranged his forces in battle order, quietly awaited the 

enemy. Montcalm marched against 
him without delay. Wolfe gave his 
men orders not to fire until the French 
were within fort}^ or fifty yards. "On 
the brave Frenchmen came," says a 
well-known Canadian writer, " and as 
they neared Wolfe's troops the rattle 
of musketry, at a given signal, ex- 
tended, as if by magic, along the whole 
of his lines. As the French wavered 
at the deadly discharge Wolfe gave 
the order to charge. Although al- 
ready wounded he led on the gren- 
adiers, lie had scarcely gone more 
than a feV paces before he was again struck, but this 
time he was mortally wounded. Nevertheless, with a wild 
shout his men still pressed on, while he was silently carried to 




"Wolfe. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



95 



advancing- line 
were clieei'ed 




■Wolfe's old Monument, Quebec. 



the rear, near a well. Tlic charge upon the 
of French troops was decisive, though they 
and encouraged to stand linn l)y 
the voice and example of Mont- 
cahn, who had ah-eadv been twice 
wounded. At length the loud 
shouts, 'They run I They run!' 
fell on the ear of the heroic Wolfe, 
and roused for a moment to con- 
sciousness the dying hero. ' Who, 
— who run?' said he. 'The 
enemy, sir ; they give way ever}^- 
where,' was the eager response. 
Then gasping a hurried message 
for Col. Burton, he turned on his 
side and said, ' Now God be 
praised ; I die in peace ! ' and instantly the In-ave Wolfe ex- 
pired. jMontcalm himself, with noble courage, restrained the 
retreating soldiers ; bat, struck a third time, he fell from his 
horse mortally wounded, and was carried 
into the city. De Vaudreuil, on whom now 
devolved the chief command of Montcalm's 
arm}', rallied a portion of the troops, and 
successfully resisted for a time the advance 
of the victorious army into the city ; but all 
in vain, for the battle was already decided 
in favor of the advancing columns of the 
enemy. Thus was this memorable battle 
fought and won, with a loss of one thousand 
five hundred French and seven hundred 
British ; and thus, in the memorable fall of 
Quebec, fell also, in Canada (although the 
after-struggle w^as protracted for a year), 
that imperial power which for more than one 
hundred and hfty years had ruled the colo- 
nial destinies of New France. The history 
of French rule in America is full of heroic 
achievements, of touching and memorable incident ; and its 
termination, though decisive, Avas still worthy of that great 
nation, whose history is parallel to our own in noble deeds and 
chivalrous renown. The death of Wolfe and Montcalm, within 
so short a time of each other, created a profound feeling of re- 
gret. Wolfe's body was conveyed to England and buried at 




"Wolfe's new Monument, 
erected iu 184D. 



90 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



Grccmvicli. A inominicnt avms erected to his memory in "West- 
min.stor Abl)ey, and another on the Plains of Abraham (which 
was rephiccd, in 184U, by the British troops serving in Canada, 
by ii handsomer one), on the very spot -svhcre 'Wolfe died, 
victorious.' JNIontcahn died on the morning after the battle, 
aged forty-seven. He was buried at the Ursuline Convent, 
Quebec. A nolde and cliivalrous soldier, he was regretted by 
friend and foe. A monument to the memory of himself and 
AVolfe was erected by subscription, at (Quebec, in 1827, chiefly 
through the exertions of the Earl of Dalhousie, then Governor- 
General of Canada." 

12. The fall of Quebec before Wolfe's invincil)le forces 
stinudated the English, and the victory was followed up with 

the intention of })ossessing Canada. 
The English Parliament freely voted 
men and money for this purpose. 
In the face of these additional meas- 
ures the French were jll-pre[)ared to 
make farther resistance. The small 
reinforcements despatched by France 
failed to reach Canada ; nevertheless, 
the governor determined to inake a 
desperate effort to I'etake Quebec, 
lie sent General de Levis from 
^Montreal with all his available 
Ibrces. General JNIurray marched 
out of the fort to meet him, but was 
compelled to retire. However, 
^Murray was i-einforced and the 
French were compelled to abandon 
the siege. The campaign of 1700 concluded the drama, and 
Canada, in this year, became a British province. " General 
Amherst's plan of the campaign for 1700 was to attack the 
outlying French i)osts of Isle-aux-Noix, Os-we-gat-chie (La 
Presentation, now Ogdensburg), and Fort Levis at La Gallettc 
(an island in the St. Lawrence) ; then to concentrate all the 
troops and rangers for a coml)ined attack on INlontreal. ]\Iurray 
was to move up from Quel)ec ; Colonel Ilaviland was to attack 
Isle-aux-Noix ; and Amherst himself was to advance against 
La Galette and Oswegatchie, on his way down the river. In 
June, Amherst left Schenectady with six thousand provincials 
and four thousand regulars. In July, he w^as joined at Oswego 
by Sir Wm. Johnson and six hundred Iroquois, afterwards 




Wolfe aud Montcalm''^ Monument. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 97 

increased to one thousand three hundred and thirty. From 
this place Sir Wm. Johnsou sent friendly overtures to the 
Indians near Montreal, which were accepted. Having sent 
Col. Haldimand with one thousand men as an advance guard, 
Amherst proceeded down the St. Lawrence in August. Oswe- 
gatchie Avas soon taken, but Fort Levis, at La Galette, held 
out some days, but at length surrendered. In August, Col. 
Haviland appeared before Isle-aux-Noix, and opei'ied fire upon 
it. M. de Bourgainville, the French commandant, did not 
long resist the attack ; but, having withdrawn with his main 
force, the rest of the garrison surrendered to the British 
■forces. Thus the whole of the St. Lawrence and Lake 
Champlain region passed from the French 
into the hands of the English. At length 
the British forces from Quebec, Lake 
Champlain, and Oswego, converged slowly 
yet simultaneously upon Montreal ; and 
early in September Montreal was invested 
by a force of seventeen thousand men under 
Gen. Amherst. Resistance was useless ; 
and, after some discussion, De Vaudreuil 
proposed to capitulate. To this Gen. Xord Amierst. 

Amherst agreed, and on the 8th of September, 1760, was signed 
that memorable document by which the whole of Canada was 
solemnly transferred from the French to the British crown. 
Thus, after one hundred and fifty years of heroic struggle, with 
scant means of defence, against powerful rival colonists and a 
relentless Indian enemy, the first promoters of European civil- 
ization and enterprise in Canada were compelled to give place 
to a more aggressive race. But they did so with honor. Thus 
concludes our account of French rule in Canada. 




98 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



CHAPTER IX. 

THE ANGLO-AMERICAN COLONIES. 

AN ACCOUNT OF THE PRINCIPAL EVENTS PROM THE EARLIEST SETTLEMENT OX 
THE COLONIES TO THE CLOSE OF THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 

Early Settlement. We will now trace the history and 
development of the colonies, thirteen in all, that united in 
1776 to cast off the British yoke, after remonstrances had 
proved vain as against the tyranny of the English government. 
Virginia, Massachusetts, Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, 
Connecticut, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, North Carolina, 
New York, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, and Georgia consti- 
tuted the United States, when the Declaration of Independence - 
was signed ; but this division pauses immediately l^efore that 
step was taken by the Americans. There were two classes of 
colonists among the early settlers : the first comers were of the 
class afterwards known in English history as Cavaliers ; they 
landed in Virginia in 1607 ; the other type, the Puritans, after- 
wards known as Roundheads in history, landed on Plymouth 
B-ock in 1620, and colonized Massachusetts. The early records 
show but little intercourse and common sympathy among these 
distant bands of men striving to master a hard destiny ; but in 
the end the contest resulted well for the world, in the estab- 
lishment of a new home for liberty. 

1. Virginia. Sir Walter Raleigh is credited with having 
given the name of Virginia to the country in which the first 
English settlement was made on this continent, in compliment 
to Queen Elizabeth. The success of the Spaniards in procuring 
gold from the native population in Mexico induced many to 
believe that all America was auriferous, and in consequence 
men who were not accustomed to daily toil came as birds of 
passage only, intending to return to England as soon as they 
had realized the Avealth which they never doubted would be 
found in abundance. To become settlers, in the better sense of 
the term, was no part of their intention. The climate was very 
trying to such persons, and their endeavors to find gold assisted 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



99 



to break down their constitutions, so that during the first sum- 
mer, bctAveen April 2Gth and autumn, one-half of the colony 
had died. 

2. Captain Smith, an adventurer, who published an account of 
his hair-breadth escapes in London while Charles I. was quarrel- 
ing with his Parliament, was appar- 
ently the ablest man in the colony 
of Virginia. His experiences in 
many countries, under trying cir- 
cumstances, had given him some 
readiness and energy, and he pur- 
suadcd the gentlemen of Virginia 
to become foresters and workmen, 
instead of idlers and gold-hunters. 
At first a prisoner among the set- 
tlers, he was afterwards chosen a 
councillor, and then president of 
the council. Under his direction 
a fort was built, and log huts as a 
protection against wintry rigors ; 
besides which he made friends of 
the Indians, and procured from 
them supplies of provisions during 
his exploring excursions. Under 
his guidance the colony came 

through its earliest perils, because he made the rule that 
none should eat except those that would work. 

3. The book published by Capt. John Smith contained 
many proofs of his ingeniousness as it was full of perilous 
adventures, and beyond all doubt his courage led him into 
many difficulties, from which it required all his address to find 
an lescape. While striving to discover a passage to the East 
Indies up the Chickahominy river, one of the feeders of the 
James river, the adventurer fell into the hands of the Indians, 
and was detained as a prisoner. But he awakened an interest 
among his captors by an exhibition of his acquirements and, 
in company with them, passed from tribe to tribe nearly all 
over the peninsula in which Gen. McClcllan operated against 
Richmond in 18G2. The great chief, Powhatan, is said to have 
condemned him to death. But the story is not absolutely beyond 
doubt, except that men wish to T)elicve it because of the interest 
attaching to the intervention of Pocahontas. Tliere was some 
foundation for the story that the beautiful Indian maiden saved 




CAPTAIX JOHN SMITH. 



100 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



his life ; and Smith was after a time sent back to the settlement, 
with promises of friendship from the Indians. 

4. Pocahontas continued to be a good friend to the "vvliite 
settlers ; l^iit the English government, under the incompetent 
direction of King James I. and his favorites, did all that was 
possible to ruin the adventure. The colonists had established 

a council to secure just ad- 
ministration ; l)ut the com- 
pany under whom the first 
charter for settlement had 
been obtained, jjrocured a 
second charter in 1G09, 
vesting the government in 
a governor only, concern- 
ing Avhose appointment the 
settlers were never con- 
sulted, and in the prepara- 
tion of whose laws they had 
no voice. 1 hey were treated 
as dumb cattle by their 
masters. 

5. The president of the 
council had been in effect 
governor for some time, and 
in that capacity the adven- 
turer, John Smith, rendered 
good service ; but about the 
time that the new charter was procured he was severely wounded, 
and returned to England. Quarrels with the Indians became 
common, and many of the settlers were killed ; besides which, 
famine and disease decimatedtheremainder so rapidly that in six 
months their lunnbcrs fell frc^m four hundred and ninety to sixty. 
Some of the colonists had tried to thrive as pirates, but their 
opportunities were few, and they abandoned the undertaking. 
The miserable remnant concluded to abandon the settlement ; 
but at the time, that they were taking their departure the new 
governor, Lord Delaware, arrived, with abundant supplies, and 
many emigi'ants. This event changed the aspect of affairs, and 
the men who were just quitting their adoptecl home returned to 
try their fortune once more. 

6. The river on which the first settlement was established 
was called James river, and the settlement Jamestown, in 




SMITH gllOAVING HIS COMPASS TO TUB 
INDIANS. 



honor of the King of England. 



The king showed his hitcrest 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 101 

in the suffering colony by issuing a third charter, in 1G12, 
allowinof .stockholders in the venture to reo^ulate their own af- 
fairs, untroubled by a council which had been formed in London. 

7. In the year 1613 Pocahontas, the beautiful Indian girl, 
who is said to have saved the life of John Smith, became the 
wife of John Rolfe, a planter. Rolfe was a man of singular 
piety, and his exhortations had induced Pocahontas to receive 
Christian l)aptism before they were joined in wedlock. The}' 
were married in the church of JamestoAvn, and three years 
later Pocahontas and hor husband were in London, where they 
were received at court and in society with every mark of dis- 
tinction. The child of the forest soon tired of the scenes by 
which she was surrounded in London, but she died suddenly, 
in 1G17, just as she was about to return. ITcr infant son is 
proudh' named as the common ancestor of many of the first 
families in Virginia, and one result of the marriage was a pro- 
longed peace between the settlers on one hand and the Chicka- 
hominies and Powhatan on the other. 

8. The year before the Puritans landed in Massachusetts, 
which happened in December, 1G20, Gov. Yeardley called to- 
gether the first legislative body of white men ever convened in 
America. This event happened Juno 28, 1G19, and the par- 
liament was an imitation of the king, lords and commons, of the 
mother country, being composed of the governor, council and 
burgesses, the last named being the representatives of the 
boroughs. The company in England might decline to ratify 
the laws passed by the local legislature, but the company could 
not enforce laws unless they were approved by the colonists : 
and the ri2:hts thus accruinj? were embodied in a kind of char- 
ter, or written constitution, in 1G21. The affairs of the company 
in London were now in the hands of men who were dccpl}' im- 
bued with a love of liberty and justice, and Gov. Yeardley had 
their fullest support in building up the rights of the colonists. 
The constitution dates from July, 1G21, when the New Eng- 
land colony was only seven months old. 

9. Tobacco-growing had become the staple industry in and 
around Jamestown. To1)acco was the currency of the colony, 
as well as its export, and along the James river there M'cre 
settlements extending on both ])anks for nearly one hundred 
and fifty miles. The company which, under its earlier man- 
agement, had sought merely to make a profit out of the adven- 
ture, had now set its mind upon making the colony a success, 
and in consequence many yc^mg women were sent out from 



102 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

London, Avhere they were speedily married, husbands paying 
one hundred Aveio'ht of tobacco as the cost of the brimjing: 
over of tlieir future helpmeets. That course of action was 
eminently successful, and many of the more enthusiastic bene- 
dicts gave one hundred and fifty pounds of tobacco for their 
better halves. Domestic ol)ligations gave to the colony the 
permanence of home in Virginia, ^\here every man could vote, 
and none ventured to interfere with religious freedom. 

10. In the year Kill), while freedom was just being estab- 
lished on a broad basis in Virginia, a Dutch vessel arrived at 
JamestoAvn, with twenty negroes, and the captain sold them to 
the planters to be employed in the cultivation of tobacco. 
That was the l)eginning of negro slavery in America, and the 
traffic continued lor many years, although the lirst venture on 
the part of the American citizens to procure slaves dates from 
Boston, twenty-six years later. 

11. Powhatan was the lirm friend of the settlers, and had 
been so since the marriage of his daughter Pocahontas to John 
liolfe ; but after his death, in 1G18, there was a conspiracy 
among the Indians to murder all the colonists on the 22d 
of March, 1G22, at midday. Three hundred and forty- 
seven persons were thus destroyed ; but the colony had 
consisted of four thousand, and the remainder were saved 
in consequence of the kindness of an Indian who wished to 
save a white man who had befriended him. Jamestown was 
fortified enough to scare the Indians from an attack, and all 
the settlements within reach were warned : but the outlying 
plantations were beyond rescue, and in them men, women, and 
children were slaughtered Avithout mercy. The colonists made 
war upon the Indians after this evidence of their treachery, 
and for more than twenty years they were peaceful after that 
outbreak, but the colony only numbered two thousand five 
hundred persons after hostilities had ceased. The Indians 
made a somewhat similar attempt April 18, 1G4-1, when al)out 
three hundred settlers were slain ; but the survivors among 
the natives Avcre glad to piu'chase peace by making consider- 
able cessions of territory. The frontier settlements were as 
usual the points of attack, and the secret was well kept ; but 
the com'age of the assailants failed even before the settlers 
began to assemble in arms. 

12. -King James annulled the charter under which the colony 
had been governed, and in 1624 made Virginia a royal prov- 
ince, promising, moreover, to prepare a code of laws for the 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 103 



government of the people ; but he died in 1625, and that afflic- 
tion was thus averted. James had probably become jealous of 
the liberal spirit evinced by the company in London. The 
governor and council were thereafter nominated by the king ; 
but Gov. Wyatt, who was governor when the charter was an- 
nulled, was continued in office, and the assembly continued in 
operation. 

13. The return of the Stuarts to poM'er in England, after the 
death of Oliver Cromwell, in 1658, Avas the occasion of very 
oppressive legislation in the Parliament of Great Britain, and 
the colonies Avhich had been aided by the Great Protector were 
now almost crushed l)y the enforcement of the Navigation Act in 
1660, which required that their tobacco should be shipped to 
England only, and must be carried in English vessels, by which 
means a twofold monopoly operated against the mdustries of 
Virginia. The first Charles had tried in vain to raise a revenue 
upon Virginian tobacco, 1>ut the advisers of the son were more 
successful. In 1658 "the Dutch and all foreigners" were in- 
vited to take part with Virginia, subject to the same duties as 
were paid by English vessels ; but times speedily changed to a 
worse complexion. The cavalier element was largely repre- 
sented in the -colonial assembly, and they played the game of 
the long Parhament in England, usurping unconstitutional au- 
thority. When their term'of office expired, they refused to be 
dissolved, and they fixed their own emoluments at two hundred 
and fifty pounds of tobacco per diem. Their tyranny increased 
with every manifestation of their power. The voting privilege 
was restricted to freeholders and house-keepers, and the few 
Quakers in the settlement were taxed at the rate of twelve 
hundred dollars per annum for non-attendance in the Anglican 
church. The royalists contrived thus to establish in Virginia 
two well-defined parties, — the wealthy planters assuming 
the airs of an aristocracy, making common cause with the 
office-holders, and the industrious, liberty-loving people con- 
sorting together as men deprived of undoubted rights. 

14. The premonitory rising known as Bacon's Rebellion, 
which occurred one century, exactly, before the Declai ation of 
Independence, was the natural and almost the inevitable out- 
come of the system introduced and upheld ])y the Royalist 
Assembly. Gov. Berkeley, who once made his boast that 
" there were no free schools nor printing-presses in Virginia," 
had been removed from office as governor by Cromwell, in 
1651 ; but being restored by Charles II., in 1660, he continued 



104: HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

ill office until the year before his death, which took phice in 
London, in 1G77. During 1G76 there were troubles with the 
Indians, and provisions had not been made for the defence of 
the colony, until a 3'oung lawyer named Bacon, aged about 
thirty-six years, raised a company and routed the marauders. 
For that service Gov. Berkeley denounced the leader as guilty, 
of treason, and Nicholas Bacon came, with his armed followers 
to discuss the question. The governor was driven out of 
Jamestown, the settlement was burned, and the village has 
never been rebuilt; but just when things promised a favorable 
outcome for the people, the young leader died, Oct. 1, 1676, 
and in tlie absence of efficient direction the attempt was quelled 
by Berkeley with great severity. 

15. Massachusetts. New England was the ambition of 
the Plymouth Company, but, like most of the adventurers that 
formed companies on the other side of the Atlantic, they knew 
but little of the task which they proposed to undertake. Several 
attempts were made on behalf of the Plniiouth Company to ex- 
plore and settle Northern A^irginia, and a colony was actuall}^ 
established on the Kennebec in 1G07 ; but the men composing 
the expedition had not the material of which success is made, 
and the settlement was abandoned in 1608, only one of the 
party having died. In the year 1620 the company procured a 
new patent, as the Council of New England, with great priv- 
ileges and concessions ; but the settlement of New England 
was not to be achieved under their auspices. 

16. Plymouth Rock was reached by the Pilgrim Fathers 
and their families, on board the Mayflower, in December, 1620, 
and they landed, to the mnnber of one hundred souls, in the 
midst of a storm of snow and sleet. They had endured too 
many hardships in their search for freedom to worship God to 
care for the inclemency of the season. The actual landing was 
made on Forefathers' Pock, as it is now called, on December 
21, the day being Sunday. The first hours of the new-comers 
in their adopted home were thus given to worship ; but their 
diligence on the succeeding days showed that their hours of 
devotion had recuperated minds strong by nature, and their 
spirit could not be cast down by obstacles and difficulties. 

17. The moral force of the Pilgrims had been proved and 
improved by the persecutions already endured l)y them in the 
name of religion, and the wilderness, cold and inhospitable as 
it seemed, was not more rugged than their determination to 
subdue it to their purposes as a home, in which liberty, as 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 105 

they understood the word, should reign supreme, and in which 
God should be worshipped by all men, according to the views 
for which they had lived and suffered. Primaril}^ it was their 
care that their children should be surrounded by religious in- 
fluences, and be well educated, and they were thrifty in the 
management of their affiiirs, being in every respect most worthy 
and desirable citizens. 

18. Trials of fortitude were not wanting at any time in the 
new settlement ; but, during the first winter, the worse than 
usually severe weather, and the unprepared condition in which 
it found them, killed more than half their number. There 
were hardly as many in good health as sufficed to bury the dead 
and attend upon the invalids ; at one time there were only seven 
who were not sick ; but the constancy of the little band never 
wavered for a moment. 

19. The Pilgrims who were sent with the shallop to inspect 
the coast before a landing Avas effected at Forefathers' Rock, on 
December 2.1 , endured one attack from Indians ; but after the 
settlement had been made the colony was undisturbed from 
that source. The tribe that had lived upon the territory which 
they occupied had been kiljed off by a pestilence, so that they 
were not trespassing in anyway upon natural rights. Samoset, 
one of the tribe of AVampanoags, who had learned some few 
words of English, came to visit them, one day in early spring, 
with words of welcome, and a treaty was entered into with 
Massasoit, the chief of his trjbe, which for fifty years was 
observed on both sides. Miles Standish, whose fame has been 
sung l)y Longfellow, was the commander of the small force of 
the colony ; but there was little occasion for actual war. One 
sachem, named Canonicus, who wavered in his faith as to the 
Pilgrims, sent a token of defiance ; but a reply, that could not 
be misunderstood, convinced the Narraganset chief that he 
could not afford to fi2:ht the new-comers. Gov. Carver liavins: 
died soon after the departure of the INIayflower, the office was 
conferred upon William Bradford, afterwards the historian of 
the settlement. 

20. Starvation seemed for a long time an imminent proba- 
bility. For many months there was no corn in the settlement, 
as the harvest proved a failure. It is customary to mention 
that at one time there was only a pint of corn to be divided, 
and that the allowance of each settler was only five kernels 
each ; but the actual fiict reveals much greater destitution, clams 
being the only food available for considerable intervals. Com- 



106 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

miiiiistic methods of working were tried here, as the same 
system had been tried in the early days at Jamestown, and in 
both cases faihirc was the result until every man worked his 
own land, alter which there was comparatively plenty. Four 
years after the first settlement there were only one hundred 
and eighty-four persons in the colony, and it was ten years be- 
fore the Council for New England gave the colony a grant for 
the land which it had occupied. The people chose their own 
governor, as no royal charter clogged their liberties, and they 
made their own laws. 

21. 21ie Bay Colony. John Endicott, the first governor 
of the Colony of Massachusetts, was about forty years of age 
when he came to America, and, although a severe man, it was 
nndoubtedly his desire to be honest. He, with five associates, 
procured a grant of land about Massachusetts Bay from the 
English Company, and a royal charter, with power to make 
hiAvs and rule the colony. The company made over their rights 
to the people who might take part in the enterprise, and as a 
consequence many Puritan families were attracted to this region. 
Salem and Charlestown, already founded by Governor Endicott, 
in 1621), formed centres of attraction for many; some colonized 
Watertown and Dorchester, and in the year 1630 Boston was 
founded, on the site known as Shawmut, afterwards called 
Tremont, by about one thousand colonists, under Governor 
Winthrop. 

22. Religious intolerance was the vice of the age from which 
the Puritans fled, but it infected the men who run from it as 
well as their pursuers. Those who established themselves in 
Massachusetts Bay were opposed to the forms of the Church of 
England, and when persons who were inclined to Episcopacy 
came to their colony they sent them back again to England. 
A system of religious tests was rigorously insisted upon in the 
settlement. Among the new-comers was one man, whose ad- 
mirable heterodoxy took the form of asserting that every per- 
son should think for himself on all matters of religion, being 
ansAverable only to God. This man was the great Roger 
Williams, and a bonfire in the midst of a powTler magazine 
could hardly have caused a greater commotion than did his 
manly teaching around Massachusetts Bay. The interference 
of the civil magistrate in supposed offences against religious 
thought was denounced by him as unjust, and in 1635 an order 
was made that the preacher should be eent to England ; but, in- 
stead of submitting to that mandate, he fled to the woods, taking 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATE.. 107 

refuge among the Intliaus, who afterwards gave him land 
whereon to found a settlement, whieh he ealled Providenee. 
The kState of Rhode Island was thus founded, and although the 
grant from the Indians was to Roger \Vllliams in person, he did 
not reserve to himself one privilege, l)ut sought to build np a 
purely democratie form of govermnent, with such light, as to 
conscience, as Avas then new to the world. In the same rela- 
tion the name of Anne Hutchinson arises, as, during the same 
year as that which marked the banishment of Roger AVilliams 
from his church at 8alem, this wonderful woman, who claimed 
to have received special communications from on high, was the 
centre of a great controversy ; and her preachings and expositions 
attracted so much notice, especially among her own sex, that 
she was banished eventually, and found refuge in Rhode Island, 
where none were questioned as to their religious views, as under 
authority. Eventually this pure and high-minded woman was 
murdered by the Indians, but her record remained undimmed. 
The Society of Friends or Quakers, also, in their quiet way, 
disturbed the peace of Massachusetts, and it was in vain that 
they were fined, imprisoned, whipped, and banished, as their 
opinions and practices remained unaltered. Four of them were 
put to death, because they had returned to the settlement after 
being banished ; but that acme of severity had no effect on the 
remainder, except to make them more persistent, and at last it 
became so evident that the persecutions could only make 
martyrs, that the iniquitous system w^as abandoned. 

23. The First Indian AYar commenced July 14, 1G75, under 
the leadership of Philip, the son and successor of the Sachem 
Massasoit. While the old chief lived there was peace, but the 
young man saw that the red men were being dispossessed of 
their hold upon the soil, and he sought to avert the doom of 
extinction by an act of savage daring and cruelty which aimed 
at the destruction of the whole colony. The tribes were con- 
federated for the deed of slaughter, and the first blow fell upon 
the people of Swanzey, as they returned from church on Sun- 
day. The colonists flew to arms, and Philip was defeated, but 
he only shifted the point of attack, and seemed to be ubiquitous. 
Tradition, not of the most reliable kind, says that an attack 
upon the people of Iladley was made on Fast day, June 12, 
1675, and was defeated by the prompt energy of Col. Goftc, 
one of the judges that condemned Charles I. to the scafibld ; but 
even the date of the assault varies as widely as from June 12 
to September 1, in the same year, and it seems probable that 



108 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

the whole story is an error. Philip was driven from point to 
point by the settlers, until he was shot by an Indian at Mt. 
Hope, after having kept the country in continual turmoil until 
far on in the year 167G. 

24. The first union of the colonies only embraced the New 
England settlements, and it dates from 1643, when Massachu- 
setts Bay, Connecticut, Plymouth, and New Haven formed a 
league against the Indians, the Dutch and the French settlers. 
The combination was known as the United Colonies of New 
England. 

25. The Navigation Act, which we have seen oppi'cssing 
Virginia, was still more cumbersome to ISIassachusetts, as the 
commerce of these colonies was considerable. Boston was 
known as a shipping place from the first year of its settlement, 
and the colonists concluded that the act should not prevent them 
carrying on their trade with the West Indies and elsewhere, 
Charles II. and his advisers determined to put down the inde- 
pendent spirit of the people, but when an officer was sent to 
enforce the law he was sent back again. The next step was to 
coustitute Massachusetts a royal province, which should take 
from the people all powers of self-government ; but Charles died 
before the scheme bore fruit, and his obstinate brother, James 
II., undertook the task. In the year 1686, two years before lie 
was compelled to abdicate the throne of England, James de- 
clared the charters of all the New England colonies cancelled, 
and sent out Sir Edmund Andros as royal governor of New 
England. For three years the oppressions of the royal ap- 
pointee were endured ; Init, as soon as it became known that 
^Yilliam III. reigned in England, the colonists deposed and im- 
prisoned the governor, resuming their old forms of administra- 
tion, until Sir William Phipps came, three years later, as the 
Governor of Massachusetts, Maine, and Nova Scotia; after 
which ^Massachusetts remained a royal province until 1776. 

26. The Witchcraft Delusion in Salem came to a head in 
the year 1692. The belief in witches was at that time all but 
universal. Kings, judges, clergymen, and men of science, 
were alike under the delusion all over the world ; and in 
Salem twenty persons were hanged and fifty-five tortured, 
because of their supposed complicity in hellish practices. 
Any and every story that was confidently told on this subject 
was sure of credence ; and persons of all ranks were sus- 
pected, more especially if they expressed doubts as to the 
guilt of the accused. The delusion ran its course, however, 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 109 

and at last died out ; but not before many persons had con- 
fessed themselves guilty of the abominable impossibilities 
charged against them. 

27. Maine and New Hampshire. Laconia was the name 
of a tract of land which was obtained from the New England 
Company, located at Plymouth, England, in 1622, by Gov. 
Gorges and others, forming a proprietary. The grant obtained 
extended from the Kennebec to the Merrimac. Sir Ferdi- 
nando Gorges was an accomplice with the Earl of Essex in his 
conspiracy against Queen Elizabeth, and became a witness 
against him ill 1601. Under James I., Gorges became Gov- 
ernor of Plymouth, in 1604, and njuch of his life was spent 
in trying to found an empire for his family in this country. 
Gorges was named Lord Proprietary of Maine, and his son 
was geneial governor for New England ; but eventually the 
grandson of the original grantee sold his rights in Maine to the 
colony of Massachusetts, for six thousand two hundred and 
fifty dollars, in 1677. Under the patent first obtained. Gorges 
and Mason operated for some time, but beyond estal^lishing 
fishing-stations near Dover . and Portsmouth, nothing was 
efiected until the patent was dissolved, when the country west 
of the Piscataqua was taken by Mason, who named it New 
Hampshire ; ISIaine, the country east of that river, being 
possessed by Gorges. The territory was claimed hy Massachu- 
setts, and it was to end all dispute as to the title that the sum 
named was paid to the grandson of Sir Ferdiuando, as set 
forth. The inclusion which was thus effected continued until 
1820. The settlements in New Hampshire were too weak for 
purposes of self-government and defence, and, in consequence, 
the stronger colony of Massachusetts was called upon to afford 
protection, so that the weaker was engrossed by the more 
powerful colony until 1741, when New Hampshire became a 
royal piovince, and enjoyed that distinction until the year 
1776. The province was called Maine, to distinguish it from 
the islands along the coast, and the name once adopted con- 
tinued. The grants conferred upon individuals, such as Mason 
and Gorges, were frequently sources of much litigation. 

28. Connecticut. Farther west was already the cry of 
the New England colonists, and the valley of the Connecticut 
or Long river, as that name implies in the Indian tongue, %vas 
the point of attraction. Intelligence concerning the situation 
had been obtained from traders who had liuilt a fort at Wind- 
sor before the council of New England had granted the terri- 



110 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

tory. The Dutch had a fort at Hartford, and also had com- 
menced traffic with the Indians, from participating in which 
they vainly strove to keep the English colonists. The requisite, 
grant from the council was procured in 1(J31 by two of the 
puritan lords in England, Saye and Seal, and Brooke, after 
whom the settlement was called Saybrook. The first regular 
settlers were led to the site of Hartford in 1637, but winter 
came on early in that year and with gieat severity, so that men 
and cattle died in considerable numbers before the spring, and 
the complete abandonment of the enterprise was determined 
upon ; but in the spring of 163(3 a much larger body came, 
under the guidance of Thomas Hooker and John Haynes, 
guided l)y the compass only, and driving flocks and herds 
before them. A fort, established by John Winthrop, shut out 
the "Dutch intruders from Manhattan," a regular government 
was established, and better times realized. The meadow-lands 
of the Connecticut were the principal source of attraction, but 
the Indian trade was not despised. 

29. Indian perils environed the western colony, and the 
Narragansets were about to join the Pequods to make war 
upon the settlement, when the founder of Rhode Island, the 
blameless and admirable Roger Williams, who had communi- 
cated the fact of the impending combination to the Governor 
of Massachusetts, and had been I'equested by Sir Harry Vane 
to interpose his influence with the Narragansets, started for 
the heart of the combination, and in the very midst of the 
Pequods used his persuasive arts so eficctually that he saved 
the men who had been the cause of his banishment. The con- 
duct of the great Roman Coriolanus shows but poorly beside 
the unpretentious nobility of the leader of free thought. His 
labors and perils extended over three days, and it is safe to 
say tliat no, other man would have succeeded as he did. The 
Pequods, unable to drag the Narragansets into the war which 
had been commenced, were compelled to fight unsupported, 
and the colony was saved from absolute destruction. Thirty 
of the settlers were murdered before an expedition, under the 
command of Mason, was determined upon, consisting of eighty 
men in all, well armed for such an enterprise, undertook to 
humble the Pequods. The superiority of European arms left 
no chance in such an encounter for the clans on the Mystic 
river, although they were as hundreds to tens. Their fort of 
palisades on the summit of a hill was carried by the Coimocticut 
forces, the wigwams set on fire, and, as the warriors tried to 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. Ill 

escape, they were shot down, or hunted to death afterwards. 
Almost the whole tribe perished in one day, and all their lands 
were laid waste. 

30. " Union is strength " was the motto among all the scat- 
tered colonies, and combinations were made in every locality 
where support could be given and received by the ditt'ercnt 
settlements. During the Pequod war the Governor of Massa- 
chusetts gave assistance by men and counsels to the Connecti- 
cut colony. This settlement comprised Hartford, AVindsor, 
and Wcthersfield, among which a written constitution, the tirst 
framed on this continent by the people themselves, gave the 
right of voting to all free men. Saybrook colony was a pro- 
prietary settlement at first, but Connecticut bought the com- 
pany's rights, and the settlement was included under its laws. 
New Haven colon}^ took the Bible for law and government, and 
the settlement was under church rule. The absorption of Say- 
brook l)y Connecticut left only two colonics in the region 
named. 

31. Definitive union was secured, in 1622, by the issue of a 
royal charter by Charles II., under the influence of John 
Winthrop, which extended to all the colonists in the combina- 
tion the rights certified under the Connecticut constitution. 
King Charles could be induced to indorse such liberal provi- 
sions in sheer thousrhtlessness, althous'h he would have anulled 
all the charters if his life had been spared. His brother James, 
in 1()8(), sent Governor Andros to Hartford to demand the 
surrender of the royal gift. The charter Avas about to be 
handed over, when the chamber was suddenly darkened, and 
before the candles could be relighted Captain Wadsworth had 
disappeared through the crowd, and the document, safely 
hidden in the Charter Oak, was not visible again until Gov- 
ernor Andros had returned to Boston. The annulment ex- 
ecuted by the royalist governor was of no avail, and three 
years later, James II. having fled from England, Governor 
Andros was imprisoned by the colonists. The charter was to 
have l)een violated in 1693, under the rule of Governor 
Fletcher, but Captain Wadsworth intimidated the governor 
into abandoning the project. 

32. Rhode Island. "Freedom of thought" was the 
watchword of this colony from the first. Before Roger 
Williams came to the island, William Blackstone, :m inde- 
pendent, who had become tired of the rigorous rule of the 
church in Boston, had settled near the site of Providence ; 



112 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

and, as wc have seen, Roger Williams made bis settlement in 
1636, contemporary with the second ex[)edition to Hartford 
under Hooker. From all the settlements those who Avere 
oppressed made their way to Rhode Island, and AVilliams gave 
of his lands to every one, until only two small pieces, which 
he had cultivated from the first, remained in his own possession. 
Mrs. Hutchinson, and some of her followers, came to the 
settlement ; the good woman having been banished from Mas- 
sachusetts as being Avorse even than Roger Williams in the 
vindication of liberty of conscience. Some of the new-comers 
established the Rhode Island plantation on the island of 
Aquiday. The word Rhode came from the Dutch roode, or 
red. In this colony the civil magistrate had no power to inter- 
fere with men on account of their religious Aiews. 

33. Roger Williams, one of the least worldly of men, was 
obliged at every step to combat the prejudices of his surround- 
ings ; all of them men able to appreciate his goodness, but im- 
pressed Avith the idea that he Avas light-headed, because he 
upheld freedom of thought. The Rhode Island settlement was 
denied the right to join the New England Union, on the plea 
that no chtirter had l)een granted, and the preacher made a voy- 
age to England Avhile the civil war Avas progressing in that 
country, Avhich ended in the triumph of Cromwell. Returning 
with a charter, in 1647, the people were convened to elect their 
officers, and to affirm the principle of religious liberty ; which 
Avas the more remarkable in that age, because those who Avere 
most zealous against the old tyrannies, or so-called orthodox 
thought, were among the readiest to put pressure upon the 
thoughts of other men. 

34. Neav Yokk. Ferdinand, Duke of Alva, boasted that 
he had put to death eighteen thousand Netherlanders during the 
war for the suppression of Protestanism in the low countries, 
but he could not destroy the spirit of enterprise and reform 
among the people, and soon after the discovery and exploration 
of the river, in 1609, which bears the name of Hendrick Hudson 
to this day, Dutch ships began to arrive to cultivate a trade 
with the Indians. Settlements were made by the West India 
Company, at Ncav Amsterdam in 1613, and at Albany, on the 
Avest bank of the Hndson, in 1614, and Fort Orange, or 
Aurania, Avas built in 1623. This settlement was successively 
called Beverwyck and Williamstadt, before the name of Albany 
was giA^en, in compliment to the Duke of York and Albany, 
afterAvards James II. of England. Patrons or patroons, who 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 113 

brought fifty emigrants -witli them, were allowed hy the com- 
pany to buy land direct from the Indians, and titles so obtained 
were indefeasible. The Van Rensselaer family obtained twenty- 
four miles square on both sides of the Hudson. 

35. New Amsterdam, on the Island of Manhattan, had four 
Dutch governors in succession, ending with Peter Stuyvesant, 
the ablest of the quartette ; l^ut none of them were able to un- 
derstand the principles of civil liberty. Dutch burgomasters 
could not comprehend the claims of the colonists to enjoy such 
privileges as had been conceded to the settlers in Connecti- 
cut, as the liberties of the Netherlands had been merely the 
crystallization of the powers of a commercial aristocracy, under 
which the people enjoyed but little freedom. The Swedish 
settlement on the Delaware, and the English settlers on the* 
Connecticut, troubled the peace of the Dutchmen, when they were 
not engaged in warfare with the Indians ; but in the end Peter 
Stuyvesant came to terms with Connecticut as to the territory 
lying between Connecticut river and the Delaware, and being 
thus enabled to give undivided attention to the Swedes he re- 
duced their settlement to submission. This happened in 16G4, 
and in September of that year, just when affairs looked more 
sound than they had ever appeared before since the first land- 
ing, an English fleet demanded an unconditional surrender, in 
the name of the admiral, the Duke of York. The people were 
certain of more liberty under the new rule than they were 
enjoying, so they refused to fight, and the brave old governor 
was compelled to capitulate. The 

name was then changed to New -^=<. -,;: -<:::^ 

York, in honor of the duke, who ;_ ^3^. ^" 

was thenceforth considered the s 
proprietor. 

36. Connecticut privileges g 
were not conceded by the new 
rulers, the people were taxed -^ 
arbitraril}', and their remonstran- 
ces were burned contemptuously ''^ar^sea85s=K-.«»«afiiaf/^!^>i.^5». 
by the hano-man : so that there 

~ THE CHARTER OAK, 

was no dimculty al)out the recon- 

quest of the settlement in 1673, when the Dutch fleets had 
become masters of the seas. The fleets prepared by Cromwell 
had been the means of the first conquest ; but since Charles II. 
ascended the throne, England had so nmch declined in power, 
that it was feared the Dutch, who had sailed up the Thames, 




114 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

would even sack London. The presence of a Dutch fleet caused 
the name of New Amsterdam to be once more assumed, but 
when the war came to an end, in 1674, England was allowed to 
resume the mastery. Gov. Andros, who was afterwards im- 
prisoned by the colonists of New England, was the first ruler 
appointed after the resumption, and his conduct was so mon- 
strous that he was recalled by Charles II. Gov. Dongan, the 
next comer, obtained permission from the Duke of York to con- 
vene a popular assembly, but when the duke became king he re- 
voked every concession, added New York to the New England 
province, of which Andros became governor, forfeited all the 
charters, forbid assemblies, and denounced printing, carrying out 
on this continent the bigoted rule which was the cause of his 
downfall in England, in 1688. The deputy governor that repre- 
sented Andros in New York was so conscious of his own misdeeds 
that he fled as soon as he learned that the people of Boston had 
imprisoned Andros ; and, in the absence of other rule, Capt. 
Leislor, an able man, in whom the people had much faith, as- 
sumed the direction of aflfairs. The first governor appointed by 
William and Mary was named Slaughter, and his most objec- 
tionable deed was the slaughter of Leislor on a baseless charge 
of treason. It is claimed that Gov. Slaughter was drunk when 
the order was made, to gratify the aristocratic enemies of the 
captain. The rule henceforward was less arbitrary until the 
days of George 11. , but there continued to l^e enough of tyranny 
to maintain the vigilance of the people in defending their 
rights. 

37. New Jersey. — Dutch parentage must be conceded to 
the settlements first made in New Jersey, and soon after the 
Duke of York became j^roprietor of the New Netherlands ha 
handed over the territory between the Hudson river and Dela- 
ware to Sir George Carteret and Lord Berkeley. Elizabeth- 
town was named after Lady Carteret in 1664, by a company of 
settlers from Long Island and the New England colonies, and 
thus the first permanent English colony in New Jersey was 
established almost at the same date as the surrender of New 
Amsterdam to the English fleet. 

38. Farther • settlement was mainly due to the Quakers, 
although Puritans and Scotch Presbyterians largely possessed 
the land. West Jersey was the portion belonging to Lord 
Berkeley, who sold to some English Quakers, and a settlement 
fi'om that body was formed at Burlington, being joined liy large 
numbers subsequently. East Jersey was purchased from Car- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 115 

teret's heirs, after his death, by another company of twelve 
Quakers, including Wilham Penn ; and the colony pros- 
pered. 

39. The consolidation of New Jersey was effected in 1702, 
when the whole of the proprietors surrendered their rights of 
rule to the English Crown, and the settlements were united to 
New York under one governor, but with an assembly to legis- 
late on local affairs. In the year 1738 New Jersey was consti- 
tuted a royal province, at the request of the people, during the 
reign of George II. 

40. Delaware was originally settled by the Swedes in 1637, 
and it is now, with the exception of Ehode Island, the smallest 
State in the Union, territorially considered. The first permanent 
settlement, near Wilmington, was called New Sweden, in honor 
of the land of their nativity, by the Swedish colonists ; but 
the Dutch, under De Vries, had established a colony in 1630, 
near Lewes, in Sussex County. The Dutch colony, only thirty 
in number, was destroyed by the Indians in 1633. The Swedes 
and Fins, acting under the Swedish West India Company, built 
a fort at the mouth of Christian Creek, and another on Tinicum 
Island, below Philadelphia. This action provoked hostilities on 
the part of the Dutch, and after much fighting the Dutchmen 
conquered, sending back to Sweden all the colonists who would 
not swear allegiance to Holland. 

41. Lord De La Warr, who came to govern Virginia just 
when the colonists were leaving Jamestown, in 1610, entered 
Delaware Bay in that year, and his name now attaches to the 
State, although Hendrick Hudson was the first explorer, in 
1609. When New York fell into the hands of the English, 
Delaware was claimed by the Duke of York. Lord Baltimore 
asserted that he had a prior claim, under a grant from the 
crown ; but the Duke, being the king's brother, carried the day, 
and in 1682 sold his rights to William Penn, who, after litiga- 
tion with Baltimore, became established as the proprietor in 
1685. Delaware was thus included in Pennsylvania for more 
than twenty years, but in the year 1703 the right to secede was 
procured ; still the colony was governed by the Governor of 
Pennsylvania until 1776. 

42. The three lower counties on the Delaware suffered but 
little from Indian and foreign wars from the time that the 
English came into possession, but, during the struggle made by 
the colonies to dispossess the French, Delaware did its share 
with honor and alacrity ; and later in the day of liberty " The 



116 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



distinguished 



themselves on 



many a 



Bhie Hen's Chickens 
sanguinaiy fiekl. 

43. Pennsylvania. — Quakerism had never before so good 
an opportunity to distinguish its peculiar tenets as were afibrded 

when William Penn obtained from 
Charles II. a grant of the land 
lying west of the Delaware river. 
The addition of the territory, which 
the Duke of York claimed was the 
result of a purchase, and Pennsyl- 
vania was taken in liquidation 
of a debt which prol^ably Avould 
never have been paid otherwise. 
The followers of George Fox were 
bitterly persecuted in England, as 
well as in some of the American 
colonies, and Penn desired to found 
a settlement in which that Avorthy 
body, his colleagues, might enjoy 
freedom to worship God accord- 
ing to their consciences. Two 
thousand men Avere sent over by 
him in a single year, and, shortly 
after, the founder of the colony 
came to superintend the establish- 
ment of his friends in peace. 

44. Brotherly love was the basis on Avliich Penn sought to 
build up a State, and Avhen Philadelphia Avas founded, in 1683, 
the land Avas purchased from the SAvedish colonists. The site 
Avas in the midst of Avoodlands, and game of all kind abounded, 
but the settlement grew apace. There Avere one hundred houses 
within twelve months, two thousand inhabitants Avithin the next 
year, and before 1686 Philadelphia already outstripped Ncav 
York, Avhich had been settled more than fifty-three years. 

45. Penn's toleration was the highest enunciation of that 
principle extant, except that in operation in Rhode Island. 
Unlike most persecuted people, the Quakers did not wish to 
persecute, and the bod}^ couA^ened to make laAvs, soon after the 
arriA^al of their founder, promulgated what is knoAvn as " The 
Great Law," which made faith in Christ the only qualification 
for A'oting or holding office, and protected from molestation for 
the sake of religion all men having faith in Almighty God. 
Jews, who haA^e been enfranchised in all the leading civilized 




STATUE OF PENN IN PHILADELPHIA. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 117 

nations, were not embraced in the toleration of Pennsylvania, 
which, by so much, fell short of the higher standard adopted 
by Roger Williams. AVilliam Pemi did not aim at personal 
aggrandizement, nor did he wish to have his name prefixed to 
" feylvania," which was the appellation selected by him for the 
lauds granted by Charles II. That addition was made in spite 
of his earnest solicitation. He gave the people every conces- 
'sion that his powers would permit, and that seemed to be 
necessary for their welfare. His position as a courtier during 
the reign of the Stuarts was compromising, but his influence was 
always exerted on behalf of a people otherwise universally op- 
pressed. The dress which was worn by William Penn as a 
courtier has continued for centuries as the distino-uishins: erarb 
of the sect to which he belonged, and is indirectly an evidence 
of the esteem in which he is held. 

46. The Grand Indian Treaty is not described by any co- 
temporary writer who was on the spot to make a record of the 
transaction ; but it is attested by letters both before and after 
the event, and the large elm-tree at Shakamaxon, near Phila- 
delphia, is frequently named. The interview was not for the 
purchase of lands, 1)ut for the ratification of a treaty of amity, 
which has always been observed on both sides. The Indians 
were much impressed by the kindly manners of the founder. 
The tree was prostrated by a storm, in 1810, and a monument 
now stands upon the spot where it flourished. Penn's address 
to the Indians was a singular piece of natural eloquence. 

47. The founder of Pennsylvania departed from the colony 
in 1684, leaving all his friends peaceful and at peace. His last 
words before sailing were, "My love salutes you all." One 
woman was brought to trial, charged with being a witch, during 
Penn's visit ; he presided on the trial, and the poor woman 
was acquitted. This was the end of such trials in Pennsyl- 
vania. After the death of William Penn, which took place in 
1718, his heirs became proprietors, and they ruled the colony 
by their deputies until the Eevolution, after which the State 
bought out their rights by a payment of nearly five hundred 
thousand dollars. 

48. Maryland. Religious persecution was the chief reason 
why the settlement in JSIaryland was made in the year 1634 by 
Lord Baltimore. The title is now extinct, but the name will 
probably endure to the end of time. The first Lord Baltimore 
was a Catholic, and stood high in the favor of King James L, 
who hated Puritanism and Presbyterianism almost as much as 



118 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

he loved himself. James raised him to the peerage, and after- 
wards gave him a grant in Newfoundland whereon to estal)lish 
a colony. In the year 1625 Baltimore went to Newfoundland, 
but the attempt to establish a settlement was a failure. Three 
years later he Avas in Virginia, hoping to find in that colony a 
tolerant spirit toward his co-religionists ; but he was disap- 
pointed, and, upon his return, he memorialized Charles I., who 
had become king, asking a grant of the area now known as 
Maryland. His son became the founder of the State, under the 
grant sued out by the first lord, who died in 1G32, and his 
second son, Leonard Calvert, became governor, having con- 
ducted an expedition for the foundation of the colony, which 
left England in November, 1633. The name, Maryland, was in 
compliment to the Queen of England, daughter of the famous 
Henri of Navarre, Avhose second name was ]\Iaria. Upon the 
land north of the Potomac, granted by Charles I., the first 
settlement was named 8t. Mary's, at an Indian village near the 
mouth of the Potomac. 

49. The Maryland charter diliered favorably from that of 
Virginia, and the first action under it was to secure for men of 
all religious persuasions perfect liberty, provided only that 
the persons claiming toleration were Christians. Every free- 
man had a voice in legislation, and Maryland soon became 
known next to lihode Island as the refuge of persecuted souls. 
The charters issued by the English government were often so 
loosely drawn that one overlapped another's boundaries, and in 
consequence of some such error internecine strife connnenced 
between Maryland and Virginia in the year 1635. There were 
other disturbances also. 

50. Councillor Clayborne, one of the dignitaries of James- 
town, in Virginia, stubbornly contended that Lord Baltimore's 
grant overlapped the boundaries of Virginia, and he erected 
trading-posts in Miryland, determining to hold them against 
the new-comers. This happened in 1635. There was some 
fighting, and Clayborne's party was beaten. He did not wait 
the resHdt of the contest, but returned to Virginia, whence he 
was sent to England to be tried as a traitor. He was acquitted 
of the charge, and in 1645 returned to Maryland, where he suc- 
ceeded in raising a rebellion which overpowered the governor 
for a time ; but after a brief interval Gov. Calvert came back 
to the colony with a force sutficient to defeat Clayborne, and 
upon his escape the rebellion ended. 

51. Intolerance prevailed in the Maryland Assembly as soon 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 119 

as the Protestants became strong enough to control that body. 
Catholics were expelled or excluded from the legislative body 
which had been established by themselves, and they were de- 
clared outlaws. There were for a time two governments, and 
from 1691 to 1715 the Baltimores were deprived of their rights ' 
as proprietors. Civil war went on with alternate successes for 
some years, and in the main the Church of England gained the 
mastery, Catholics being disfranchised. After the year 1715 
the fourth Lord Baltimore procured a recognition of his rights, 
and toleration became the rule once more. After that time the 
course of events went on without disturbance worthy of note 
until 1776. 

52. South Carolina. Charles II. granted a large tract 
of land to his councillor. Lord Clarendon, and several other 
noblemen, in 1663,- and this vast area south of Virginia was 
called Carolina, from Carolus, in his honor. The first colony 
that was established in South Carolina was on the banks of the 
river Ashley, in 17 70,. and this was known as the Carteret 
Colony. Ten years later the settlers concluded that they would 
move their quarters, and in 1680 they emigrated to a tongue 
of land between the Cooper and Ashley rivers, the site of the 
present city of Charleston, seven miles from the Atlantic, and 
surrounded by every facility for an unbounded commerce. 
There is no finer harbor on the Atlantic coast. The growth 
of the settlement was not raj^id during the first half century, 
but after that time it increased considerably. The Dutch came 
from New York and the surrounding country, and the Hugue- 
nots from France also contributed a large quota toward the 
limited success that was achievedi 

53. John Locke's Legislation, It often happens that great . 
philosophers fail when they attempt to bring doAvn the theorems 
of the closet to the work of every-day life. Locke serves to 
illustrate that fact. In concert with the brilliant Earl of 
Shaftesbury, the philosopher undertook to make laws for 
Carolina, and he did so ; but the system was entirely miscon- 
ceived. The comprehensive writer on "the Understanding" 
allowed no understanding to the people, who were entirely lost 
sight of in a magnificent display of manors, baronies, and 
feudal titles, such as could only provoke laughter wherever a 
new attempt might be made to create them. After much time 
spent in unavailing endeavors to bring the scheme into operation 
the abortive code was indefinitely almndonod. 

54. The royal province of South Carolina, known as the 



120 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

Carteret Colony, dates from 1729, when the proprietaries, be- 
coming tired of the continuous jealousies of the people, who 
were unwilling to pay rents and taxes, and who resented every 
attempt at arbitrary procedure, surrendered to the British 
Crown their rights of government, and retained only one-eighth 
of the soil. Up to that time South Carolina had been connected 
in a very cumbrous way with North Carolina, under the same 
governor. South Carolina was now a distinct province, having 
full control of its own local affairs. 

55. North Carolina. Albemarle Colony was named 
after Gen. Monk, who, on the 8th of May, 1660, procured the 
restoration of Charles II., and was created Duke of Albemarle. 
The grant of land on which it stood covered both Carolinas, 
North and South, and it would be useless to recapitulate the 
manner in which it was obtained. The people who had been 
settled in Virginia, north of the new grant, pushed their way 
to this point and established a plantation. They selected a 
governor among themselves, and, upon condition that they paid 
a rental of one cent per acre to the proprietary, they Avere not 
disturbed in any respect as to their rights and liberties. 

56. The attempt to introduce the grand model of law was a 
failure in North Carolina, as well as in South, and in both 
settlements there was much satisfaction when the claims of the 
proprietary ended in the establishment of two royal provinces. 
The arbitrary conduct of the owners of the soil, who had claimed 
authority to tax, to govern, and to direct, as well as to collect 
rent, and other impositions, had long kept the people in a 
peculiarly watchful and jealous mood. The promises made to 
the people had not been observed, their laws and their officers 
had been superseded, and they had every cause to look with 
disfavor upon the men by Avhom they had been deceived. 

57. George Fox, the founder of the Quakers, visited the 
Carolinas in 1672, while the Locke constitution was under 
debate, and he found the people very well disposed to hear 
from him the truths of religion ; many Quakers were there, 
and men of all classes who had fled from oppression elsewhere ; 
but none who were disposed to submit to the arbitrary preten- 
sions of the proprietaries. There was relief from many troubles 
when the colony was constituted a royal province, in 1729. 

58. Georgia. George II., the second monarch in the 
Hanoverian line, granted to an English officer named Oglethorpe, 
and to some others, in 1732, the tract of land known as 
Georgia, being named from the king, to be held in trust for 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STxiTES. 121 

settliDg the colony. The territory was at that time in dispute 
between Great Britain and Spain, and Gen. Oglethorpe was com- 
mander of forces as well as founder of a colony. John Wesley 
and George AVhitfield were associated with him in the work of 
settlement, and the latter visited the colony very often, intent 
upon charitable purposes. The first settlement was made at 
Savannah, in January, 1733, by Gen. Oglethorpe and one hun- 
dred aud twenty persons, who were to hold land on the condition 
of rendering military service when required ; but the requirements 
in that direction were irksome, and great numbers left the colony 
for North Carolina. After that time a change was made, and 
every settler was allowed fifty acres of land in fee. When war 
was declared by England against Spain, in 1739, Gen. Oglethorpe 
commanded the colonial troops and Indian allies to the number 
of one thousand, but an expedition into Florida, undertaken 
by him, proved a failure. Charity contributed largely to make 
Georgia a home for the suflering and struggling poor in Eng- 
land ; but much discontent was expressed because negro slavery, 
which was allowed in other States, was expressly prohibited 
here, and in 1752 the trustees surrendered their trust to the 
crown, and Georgia became a royal province until the year 
1776. There were many other limitations in the way of 
paternal legislation attempted by the trustees during their 
term of authority, such as prescribing the size for a farm, for- 
bidding the importation of rum, and declaring women incom- 
petent to inherit land. Wisdom naturally suggests limitations 
as to all such matters as desirable sometimes, but the people 
will seldom submit gratefully to such prescriptions from others. 
It was proper, when land was to be held on terms of military 
service, that women should be disqualified, but in any other 
respect the law was an absurdity. Georgia was the younger 
State when the Revolutionary War commenced, but she bore 
her share in the struggle Avith exemplary courage. 

59. Wars. Under King WniiamllL 1689-1697. Prot- 
estantism had been fought for between Holland and France for 
many years before William, Prince of Orange, was called to 
the English throne. That event made the war English, and 
involved the colonies. The Iroquois assisted the English 
settlers ; the Indians of Canada and Maine gave aid to France. 

60. Indian atrocities were now combined ^vith the strategy 
and weapons of civilization, and outlying settlements in New 
York and New England were exposed to terrible outrages. 
Some of the scenes described are absolutely shocking, and of 



122 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

course the effort on each side was to outstrip the other, once a 
beginning had been made. It is claimed that the preh'minary 
assault was made by a war party of French and Indians from 
Canada. 

61. Reprisals were made with little delay. Gov. Phipps, 
of Massachusetts, led an expedition against Port Eoyal, in 
Acadia, and was very successful, obtaining much plunder. 
Another enterprise, involving a combined attack by sea and 
land ui)on Canada, fVuled utterly. Proceedings dragged on in 
a desiiltory way until the King of France, Louis XIV., con- 
cluded a peace, in 1697, acknowledging the right of William 
III., by treating with him at Ryswick. The territories held 
at the beginning of the war were not disturbed by the treaty. 

()2. Under Queen Anne. 1702-1713. The AVar of the 
Spanish Succession was entirely European and dynastic, as the 
aim of England was to curb the power of France ; but it in- 
volved the colonics in a resumption of hostilities. New York 
was protected by the neutrality of the Iroquois, or Five Nations ; 
but New England suffered severely, their frontier line being 
desolated. Outlying settlements w^ere given up, and, near to 
the towns, people worked with their weapons ready for use. 

63. The colonists replied vigorously by Avresting Port Royal 
once more from the French, with the assistance of English 
troops, and the place was called Annapolis, as a compliment'to 
the queen. Quebec was assailed once more, without avail; 
many vessels were lost, and nearly one thousand men. South 
Carolina and Georgia made attacks upon the Spanish fort of 
St. Augustine, in Florida, which had become a nest of free- 
booters ; but the colonists had no success in that quarter. 

64. Treaty of Utrecht. After eleven years' fighting, the 
genius for war possessed by the Duke of Marlborough, com-, 
mander of the English forces, compelled Louis XIV. to sub- 
scribe to a treaty most unfavorable to France. Among othei' 
concessions Acadia was ceded to England. 

65. Under George 11. 1734-1748. European complica- 
tions once more involved the colonies ; but the capture of the 
fortress of Louisburg, on Cape Breton, was the main incident 
on this side of the Atlantic. The capture was eHected by 
English and colonial troops coml^ined ; and when peace was 
concluded by the treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle, in 1748, France 
resumed possession of Louisburg. 

Q>Q. French and Indian. 1754-1763. Territorial aggres- 
sion was the purpose aimed at by France, and probably by all 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 123 

parties, in the nine years' war wliich commenced in 1753. 
During the brilliant, meteor-like career of John Law in France, 
the nation had become possessed of the idea that this continent 
contained enormous mineral wealth in all parts, and conse- 
quently the policy then inaugurated still continued in opera- 
tion. Territory must be extended wherever possible. The 
Enghsh possessions were not well situated for defence, as they 
spread over a coast line about one thousand miles long, without 
facilities for intercommunication and support between the 
several colonies. The French had cultivated friendly relations 
with the Indians for almost a century, since the first arrival of 
the Jesuits on Lake Superior, and that gave them command 
of an immense area of country, as well as of very useful allies in 
such a war as was now to commence. The intercourse of Father 
Marquette with the native tribes was now to become valuable, 
in a warlike sense, to his countrymen. France was not well 
prepared for a war ; but it seems to have been anticipated that 
strategic aggressions would pass unheeded, until the troops 
should be so firmly established in their posts that any opera- 
tion against them with the limited force available would be 
fruitless. From Quebec to New Orleans France had possession ; 
and at many points in the interior there were strong positions, 
such as could hardly be taken from them without a regular 
siege and a considerable army. The region west of the Alle- 
ghanies, along the Ohio, was debatable land, and the right of 
the strongest would probably prevail. The outrages inflicted 
and endured by both sides during preceding wars had created 
intense animosity, and occasions for quarrel were daily olfered. 
Surveyors on the Ohio, acting under English orders, were 
seized and detained by French troops, and very soon there 
was hardly one of the sixty posts occupied by the enemy that 
had not some unhappy prisoners of war held in durance without 
authority. The British had established a post on the Miami ; 
the French, with a largely superior force, broke it up, although 
there was peace between the two nations, secured as firmly as 
an}i;hing can be secured by treaties. In reality all that was 
being done was under orders from head-quarters, and at the 
most favorable moment there would be a sutficient force ready 
to follow up any advantage. Additional forts had to be erected 
at Presque Isle, near the town of Erie, Pa., on French Creek, 
known as Fort Venango, and twelve miles north of that point, 
near the site of the town of Waterford, Fort le Buoef. These 
movements gave much concern to the colonists. 



124 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

67. George Washington, already a young man of parts and 
promise, was twenty-one years of age when Lieut. Gov. Din- 
widdie commissioned him to visit the forts last mentioned, and 
request that they should be dismantled. The journey through 
the wilderness from Williamsburg to Lake Erie was full of 
peril, ])ut nothing daunted the young hero. The French officers 
were of course acting under orders, and there was no argument 
but force that would compel them to retire. The commandants 
were polite, but confident that they could hold their own, and 
there were many evidences that expeditions were even then 
afoot, which boded no good to the colonists. On the return 
through the wilderness, fully four hundred miles, the horses of 
Washington and his friend broke down, and they were obliged 
to continue the journey as pedestrians during a very inclement 
season. An attempt on the life of the youthful ambassador 
only resulted in the capture of the skulking Indian ; and a still 
greater peril was encountered by the upsetting of a raft on 
which the two companions were crossing the Alleghany river. 
The reply of St. Pierre, the commandant at Fort le Boeuf, left 
no room for doubt that, within a few months at farthest, war 
would be commenced by one of the two parties. 

as. Commencing liosTiLiTiES. I may repeat substantially 
some things here contained in an account of Canadian history 
on previous pages, but this is necessary. Early in the spring 
some English traders were driven away by the French from the 
fork of the Monongahela and the Alleghany, and a fort was 
erected at that point. The site of Fort Du Quesne was of such 
importance that even at that moment a Virginian regiment, with 
Col. Frye, commandant, and AVashington as his second, was on 
the march to hold the position. Washington, with a corps of 
observation, was despatched to reconnoitre, the first shot of 
that Ioug: war beinsi; fired under his orders. Jumonville, a 
French ofiicer, lying in ambuscade to surprise and slaughter 
the colonial force, was taken in the rear and defeated by the 
young Virginian. The colonel commandant dying, Washington 
built a stockade at the Great Meadows, and defended Fort Neces- 
sity against the French with very great odds, until capitulation 
was inevitable. 

69. Necessities of the Situation. Virginia and Pennsyl- 
vania were menaced by the Indian allies of the French as long 
as Fort Du Quesne remained in the hands of its builders ; there- 
fore the fort must be demolished or occupied by British troops. 
Louisbarg, once taken by the colonists, and abandoned by the 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 125 

British, was, in the hands of the French, a perpetual source of 
danger to the Newfoundland fisheries, as privateering vessels, 
harboring there and in Acadia, could commit ravages and escape 
pursuit under the guns of the fort. Quebec strongly fortified 
gave to Canada the St. Lawrence river. The route to Canada 
by the lakes George and Champlain was commanded by the 
fortresses at Crown Point and Ticonderoga. The fortress at 
Crown Point was called Fort St. Frederick, and it occupied a 
very fine position for military purposes. After the British pro- 
cured possession they silent a large sum on the fortification. 
To take such places out of the hands of the French was of 
primary importance. 

70. Beaddock's Command. The British general to whom 
was committed the task of capturing Fort Du Quesne held his 
Indian enemies too cheaply, and would not be warned by his 
aid-de-camp, George W ashington. The approach to Du Quesne, 
in July, 1755, was signalized by the troops falling into ambus- 
cade of Indians, with whose methods of war the regular soldiers 
were unfamiliar, and they Ave re terribly cut up. Gen. Braddock 
fell, mortally wounded, and his command retired in confusion, 
their retreat being covered by the Virginian troops under 
Washington, whose conduct deserves the highest praise. 

71. Brigadier-General Forbes' Expedition. Three 
years elapsed before the British were again ready to move on 
Fort Du Quesne, this time under Gen. Forbes, Col. Washington 
commanding the Virginia forces. Braddock lost everything 
and his own life by recklessness. Forbes, a cautious Scotch- 
man, spent so much time in making roads for his troops that it 
was near the end of November, 1758, before he came within 
fifty miles of the point of attack, and a council of war deter- 
mined to abandon the enterprise. Washington urged a rapid 
advance, and led the van himself, guarding against all chances 
of an ambush ; so that on the 25th of November the fort was 
abandoned by the French, who set fire to the buildings and 
retreated. The brigadier-general named the captured ruin 
Pittsburg, in honor of the first AVilliam Pitt, afterwards Earl 
of Chatham, the ablest statesman that had ever been prime 
minister in England. The spot which was then the key to 
American security is now the vast entrepot of her manufacturing 
greatness. 

72. Conquest of Acadia. There was but little glory in 
the proceedings of the British troops in this expedition, as the 
people were driven ruthlessly from their homes, which they 



126 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

had made no effort to defend, and therefore they should have 
been treated as non-combatants. The forts at Fond de la Baie^ 
now rendered Bay of Fundy, were not capable of vigorous 
defence, and with their fall the whole region east of the Penob- 
scot became British. 

73. Louisburg was the next point to be carried, and Gen. 
'Loudoun was to have made the attack in 1757, but after much 

preparation he abandoned the project and remained at Halifax. 
Gen. Wolfe and Gen. Amherst, afterwards commander-in- 
chief, captured the city and fortifications of Louisburg in 1758, 
after a sharp bombardment : but the island was not made the 
rendezvous of the British forces. 

74. A Fruitless Battle. When Gen. Braddock was 
marching to his defeat and death, near Fort Du Quesne, Major- 
Gen. Johnson, in command of the provincial forces, approached 
Crown Point. Baron Dieskau, the officer in charge of the 
French fortress, did not wait to be attacked ; he led his forces, 
with his Indian allies, against Gen. Johnson's camp, and came 
near destroying the whole expedition. The commandant being 
wounded early in the affray, the conduct of the defence fell 
upon Phineas Lyman, the second in command ; and with such 
men as Israel Putnam in the ranks, lighting as private soldiers, 
it would have been difficult to entirely lose the day. The 
attacking party was routed completely, but there was no 
attempt on the part of the commandant to capture Crown Point. 
Gen. Johnson was made a baronet, had the thanks of Parlia- 
ment and twenty-five thousand dollars, because of the other- 
wise barren victory, which he did not improve. This action 
took place in September, 1775, and after loitering a while 
longer, building Fort William Henry, he returned to Albany, 
leaving a small force in charge of the useless fortification. 
This fort was afterwards taken by the French. 

75. Gen. Abercrombie's Failure. About four months 
before Fort Du Quesne fell, in November, 1758, Gen. Aber- 
crombie, a British officer, ordered an assault upon Ticonderoga, 
unsupported by artillery, and it was noticed that he was con- 
spicuous by his absence during the fruitless assault. The 
general was properly removed from the command soon after- 
wards. The attack was a disastrous failure. 

7G. Overcoming the Difficulty. Gen. Amherst, with a 
large army, compelled the evacuation of both Ticonderoga and 
Crown Point by the French, in 1759, and thus another step 
was obtained towards security for British Colonial America. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 127 

77. General Shirley was to have captured Fort Niagara in 
1755, but having readied Oswego with his forces, he was dis- 
couraged because of the defeat of General Braddock, and after 
building a fort, which was afterwards captured by the French 
general, Montcalm, with a quantity of valuable stores, he left 
a garrison, to become prisoners, and returned. Four years 
later, in 1759, General Prideaux compelled Fort Niagara to 
surrender, and the west was fully possessed by the British and 
colonial forces. 

78. Wolfe and Montcalm. The summer of 1759 saw two 
able and brave men pitted against each other at Quebec. Gen. 
Wolfe, with a large naval force and eight thousand troops, ar- 
rived off Quebec, designing to attack and capture that city and 
fortress from a French force equal to his own, in a strong posi- 
tion, commanded by a gallant and entirely competent officer, 
General Montcalm. The city was destroyed without difficulty, 
by bombardment, but the citadel on the Heights, beyond the 
Plains of Abraham, seemed to defy all possibility of capture. 
Wolfe, sick in bed, revolved many schemes ; but none promised 
success, until a careful reconnaissance revealed a narrow path- 
way up the precipitous rocks, and by that road he led his troops 
to victory. The shore was guarded l)y sentinels, but a device 
prevented a premature alarm, and the soldiers were on the 
Heights ready for battle before daybreak, on the thirteenth of 
SeiDtember, 1759. Montcalm was almost paralyzed by the 
audacity of the assault ; but as soon as it became evident that it 
was an attack in force he used all the means at his disposal to 
destroy the assailants. Both commanders fell, mortally wounded. 
Wolfe, thrice struck, died on the field of battle, and Montcalm 
followed him within twelve hours. The steady conduct of 
Wolfe's troops ^vas in marked contrast to the precipitancy of 
the French soldiery on this occasion, and a bayonet charge 
which Wolfe proposed to lead in person', decided the contest. 
Quebec garrison and city capitulated five days after the ascent 
of the Heights to the Plains of Abraham, and this event more 
than any other contributed to bring the war to an end. The 
pathetic courage and skill of General Wolfe, with the devotion 
of Montcalm, divided the admiration of mankind. 

79. William Pitt's Policy. The capable and bold man 
who had conducted the war to the point just seen was wise 
enough to be aware that France would not lose Canada without 
a final efibrt ; consequently when, in 1760, there was an attempt 
to recapture Quebec, a powerful and well-appointed fleet was 



128 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

despatched in time to defeat the movement. Montreal was 
taken, and all Canada came under British sway. Spain ceded 
Florida, and France gave up her territories east of the Missis- 
sippi to England, except certain small fishing-stations south of 
Newfoundland. New Orleans and the country west of the 
Mississippi, held by France, Avas given to Spain, and Louisiana 
remained to be dealt with later by Napoleon. 

80. The Ottawa Chief. Pontiac represented, better than 
any other Indian of his time, the deep hold that the policy of 
the French had taken upon the tribes. The insolence and 
hauteur of the British officer and troops roused in the Indian 
nature all that was least lovely, while the polite and friendly 
bearing of the Frenchman had made a Hies in all directions. 
The ditibrence being constitutional, there is no ground for won- 
derment that the same result has been experienced by all the 
leading Frenchmen, from Father Marquette and the Baron La 
Salle to Montcalm, dying at Quebec. Soon after the French 
forts were surrendered to the English, Pontiac, chief of the 
Ottawas, an able and very treacherous man, proposed to the 
several tribes a combination against the enemy, so that they, 
being taken unawares, might be despoiled of all their posses- 
sions. Many forts were carried by sudden assaults and other 
devices. Detroit was to have been the grand stroke, and Pon- 
tiac presided there in person ; but the night before the attack an 
Indian squaw, to whom the governor had been kind, revealed 
the conspiracy. Pontiac and his braves were to wait upon the 
governor as a delegation, apparently unarmed, but really with 
their muskets, shortened for the purpose, hidden under their 
mantles. The chief was to make a complimentary speech, and 
at its conclusion offi3r a belt indicative of friendship to the 
doomed officer ; but the manner, differing from the customary 
method, was to be a signal for the warriors to carry out their 
scheme of slaughter, by killing the governor and his household 
first, and then proceeding to the demolition of the settlement. 
The delegation was received, but every man surrounding the 
governor was armed ostentatiously ; and while Pontiac was 
speaking, the soldiers on guard in the anteroom were heard 
handling their weapons so that the wary Indian was afraid to 
carry out his design. The belt was presented to the governor 
in the manner indicating peace, and the design was frustrated. 
The governor, in reply, accused the Indians of treachery ; and 
when they protested that he had been deceived, he pulled aside 
their dresses, showing their concealed weapons in confirmation 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 129 

of his statements. Seeing that they held a safe conduct, he 
permitted them to escape, but the Indians, foiled in their imme- 
diate scheme, regularly besieged the city, and the attempt only 
failed because the allied tribes lost contidence in their leader. 
Their schemes were successful in eight cases, and their victims 
were destroyed without mercy. Besides the forts taken, many 
settlements w^ere ravnged ; but eventually Pontiac, still intent 
on vengeance, was stabbed by an Indian who wished to end the 
series of disasters that he was bringing upon the tribes. The 
war ended with a treaty in which nearly all the Indians con- 
curred. 

81. Consequences of Training. While these wars lasted 
the colonies, hitherto divided by distance, and in some degree 
by petty jealousies, learned to know and to respect each other ; 
so that, although thirty thousand men were lost in the several 
conflicts and consequences, the force that remained was stronger 
in proportion and more ready for the work that must be done. 
The cost of the several undertakings had aggregated about 
sixteen million dollars, and only about five million dollars of 
that sum was paid back by Great Britain. Many who might 
have been first-class Tories but for experience were completely 
cured by contact with British officers, Avho looked superciliously 
upon every man, however brave, unless he had the manners 
and angularities of the regularly trained military man. 



CHAPTER X. 

ENGLAND FROM IGOO TO 1760. 

THE KEIGNS OF JAMES I., CHARLES I., CROMWELL, CHARLES II., JAMES II., WILLIAM 
III., ANNE, GEORGE I., AND GEORGE 11. 

1. England's deep-minded, high-spirited, stout-hearted 
woman king, Elizabeth, was succeeded by James L, the first of 
the unhappy race of Stuart, on the 25th of July, 1 603. At this 
time there were three religious parties in the kingdom, — the 
Established Church, the Roman Catholics, and the Puritans. 
The new king deceived and disappointed both the latter by 
giving all his support to the P^stabli.shed Church. It was not 
long until all the disappointed, both of religious and political 
parties, contrived plots against the king. These were mostly 



130 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

discovered and punished. Among those who fell victims to 
these conspiracies was Sir Walter Ealeigh. He was charged 
with conspiring against the life of the king, desiguiHg to over- 
throw the government and religion of the realm, and to place 
the Lady Arabelhi Stuart (a descendant of Henry VII.) on the 
throne. Ealeigh, who was one of the greatest geniuses of his 
ao-e, had rendered glorious services to the crown, as a navi- 
gator, a discoverer, and a brave defender of his country. All 
these claims were disregarded. He was brought to trial before 
a court composed of the bitterest of his enemies ; and, notwith- 
standing one of the most eloquent defences that was ever pleaded 
in a court of justice, this brave man was declared guilty, and 
committed to the Tower. Near the close of the year 1604, the 
exasperated Catholics entered into the gunpowder-plot con- 
spiracy, which was also discovered, and its participants duly 
punished, and the laws against the Roman Catholics were* made 
even more severe. 

2. James I. had a very high idea of the divine right of 
kings, and w^rote a book to prove his theory. He did all in his 
power to protect the royal prerogative. In these exalted 
notions he was supported by the bishops, and most of the 
nobihty. But the Commons opposed him, and remained true 
to the best interests of the nation. James I. was extravagant, 
and therefore exorbitant in his demands upon the Commons 
for means. When the Commons refused to grant his requests, 
he sold patents of nol)ility, and created a new title — that of 
baronet, which he made hereditary and sold for a thousand 
pounds. His subjects complained of his extravagance and ex- 
cesses. In this reign perished a victim to the jealousy of the 
monarch for his title to the throne, — the Lady Arabella 
Stuart. Like the victims of preceding reigns, she was beauti- 
ful, accomjilished, and unambitious ; her only crime being that 
she, too, although in a more remote degree than James, was 
descended from Margaret, the daughter of Henry Vll. As 
long as she remained single, although closely watched, the Lady 
Arabella was not persecuted ; but, on her marriage with Sir 
William Seymour, she was taken into custody, and her husband 
was sent to the Tower. Both contrived to escape. Sir AVilliam 
Seymour, in the disguise of a physician, managed to get safely 
to Flanders ; but the unfortunate Lady Arabella was seized mid- 
Avay across the Channel, and brought back to England, where, 
after four sad years of captivity in the Tower, she died insane. 
In 1012 the Count Palatiuo, a German prince, came to England 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 131 

and maiTiccl the Princess Elizabeth. The marriage was cele- 
brated with great pomp and ceremony. The princess accom- 
panied her hnsband to German}^, where, in 1G19, he was elected 
King of Bohemia, by the Protestants of that countrj^ but the 
Roman Catholic Emperor of Austria made war upon Bohemia, 
and the monarch was driven from his throne, and Elizabeth, 
unaided by her father, the English king, became a fugitive in 
a castle on the Rhine. The laws against Puritans, and all dis- 
senters from the Established Church, in this reign, were very 
severe. Not satistied with upholding Episcopacy in England, 
James visited Scotland, to establish it there. The people of 
Scotland regarded him as a traitor, both to the principles in 
which he had been educated and to the promises which he had 
made. He appointed bishops, and ordered festivals to be cele- 
brated ; but, so for from establishing Episcopacy, the people 
clung more fondly than ever to their Presbyterian Church ; and 
James only began a religious struggle, Avhich, in the reign of 
his son and successor, was continued in rebellion and blood- 
shed. 

3. Sir Walter Raleigh had now heen in prison for thirteen 
years, with naught to cheer the weary hours of his captivity 
but literary pursuits. AVithin the walls of the Tower he wrote 
a history of the world. Being aroused by the accounts of Capt. 
John Smith, the Jamestown colonist. Sir Walter, in the year 
1615, proposed, on condition of recovering his liberty, to fit 
out an expedition to Guiana, to discover a gold mine, which 
he believed to exist there. The king gave his consent, but re- 
fused a pardon ; hence the brave and accomplished adventurer 
left Enghmd on the 28th of March, 1617, with the sentence of 
condemnation upon him. No gold was found, and, in a battle 
with the Spanish, Sir Walter's son was killed. Upon his return 
to England he was seized and thrown into the Tower, Avhere, on 
the 29th of Octolier, 1618, he was beheaded, under a sentence 
passed tifteen years before. In 1(524 the Princess Elizalieth 
and her husband still remained fugitiAcs from Bohemia, the 
English king refusing to aid them against the Spanish and 
Austrians. James I. now opened negotiations Avith the Court 
of Erance, for the marriage of Prince Charles with Henrietta 
Maria, the sister of the Erench king. These Avere successful. 
Meanwhile James I. died, Ivlarch 27, 1625. He Avas suc- 
ceeded l)y Charles I., AA'ho, with his light-hearted French bride, 
began his reiijn Avitli even hio-her notions of the divine ri2:ht of 
kmgs than his father bad held. But the House of Commons 



132 



HISTORY OF DOMIXION OF CANADA, 



had grown both in a knowledge of its rights and a determina- 
tion to maintain them. The nation had become rich, and now 
followed the conflicts between Cliarles I. and the Commons, as 
also between him and the dissenters. In the Third Parliament 

of his reign the " Petition 
of Eight" was drawn up, 
and, after much opposition, 
was finally granted by the 
king ; also in the same 
Parliament a committee Avas 
appointed to consider the 
state of rchgion, in which 
Oliver Cromwell is intro- 
duced to the public for the 
first time. 

4. In 1637 Charles at- 
tempted to introduce Episco- 
pacy into Scotland, but the 
Scots were filled with indig- 
nation. The people assaulted 
the prelates, and threw sticks 
and stones at the clergymen 
who attempted to read the 
liturgy. Finally the Scots, 
animated hy religious enthu- 
siasm, raised an army, and 
under l>anners bearing tlie 
inscription, "For Christ's 
crown and covenant," 
marched to encounter the 
kings forces Avliich had been 
raised to quell them. They 
met near the river Tweed, 
l)ut no engagement took 
place. Charles found tlic 
enemy stronger than he had anticipated, and perceived, moreover, 
that there was no disposition on tlie part of his own troops to make 
the attack. Charles Avas forced to withdraw his army and enter 
into a treaty with the Scots. 

5. Thomas AVentworth, afterwards Earl of Stratford, having 
strongly supported the king, had been sent to govern Ireland, 
lie was a man of great ability, and managed to restore order to 
that country, and went so far as to obtain from the Irish Parlia- 




CHARLES I. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 133 

ment supplies of money for the king. When Charles was in 
the height of his troubles with the Scots he sent for Wcntworth, 
created him earl, and sought his advice. He advised summon- 
ing Parliament, thinking he could manage it as he had done the 
Ii-ish Parliament. Accordingly Parliament met, in April, 
1640, but the spirit of the Commons ran higher than ever, and 
Charles was now in greater trouble than before ; and as they 
began upon the old subject of grievances, before granting any 
money, the king dissolved it at the end of a short session of 
three weeks. But the Scots, meanwhile, with a good army, 
had crossed the border, overcome the royal forces, and entered 
England to present their grievances to the king. Under these 
circumstances he was compelled to enter into negotiations with 
the Scots, and, moreover, to yield to the clamors of the nation, 
and summon his tifth and last, — the celebrated Long Parlia- 
ment. It met on the 3d of November, 1640. Its first acts were 
to impeach Thomas Wcntworth, Earl of Stratford, and Laud, 
Archbishop of Canterbury, for high treason. Both were ulti- 
mately condemned to the Ijlock. In 1641 Parliament passed 
measures for the removal of the courts of High Commission 
and Star Chamber. The latter was established during the 
reign of Henry VII., but did not receive that name until the 
reign of Elizabeth, when the former was established. 

6. After the death of Earl Straftbrd, a rebellion broke out 
in Ireland, headed by Roger jMoorc, a Roman Catholic, and 
directed against the English of the Pale, as the Protestant 
colonists of Ireland were called. The news produced a great 
excitement in England, and men and money were raised to put 
down the rebellion. The king was so lukewarm in suppressing 
this outbreak that suspicions were aroused of his being in 
league with the Roman Catholics. He was accused, moreover, 
of soliciting the aid of foreign princes to quell the growing power 
and spirit of his Parliament. Distrust of Charles grew stronger 
day l)y day, and when he endeavored to seize five of the C-om- 
moners, on a charge of high treason, it knew no bounds. These 
gentlemen, being made aware of the attempt, withdrew before 
the king entered Westminster Hall, and were soon beyond his 
majesty's reach. The Parliament, therefore, at once passed a 
bill, to bring the military force of the kingdom, for the future, 
partly under their control. The king, of course, refused his 
consent, and that body then decided to muster an army and put 
the kingdom in a state of defence, without the king's consent. 
This was the benfinninc: of civil war. The king; at once levied 



134 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

all the troops possible among the loyal sections of the country. 
His army was raised, for the most part, among the nobility, 
who were intensely loyal to the king. The Universities of 
Oxford and Cambridge favored the royal cause. The queen, 
who had gone to Holland, pawned the crown jewels, and sent 
her husband the money. 

7. The Parliament was not idle, but published their "Ordi- 
nance of Militia;" and enlistments, especially from among the 
lower classes, soon swelled their ranks. "Although thei'c were 
few well-trained soldiers amongst them, they were enthusiasts 
for the cause in which they fought. Such zeal was shown in 
contrilnitions, from the bag of gold, or silver-plate, of the 
wealthy Londoner, down to the poor countrywoman's silver 
thimble, that their army was called, in derision, 'The thimble 
and bodkin army.' John Hampden and Oliver Cromwell had 
commissions as colonels in the Parliament's army. Colonel 
Hampden gathered his men under a banner, bearing on one side 
the inscription, ' God with us,' and on the other the Hampden 
motto, 'Vestigia nulla retrorsum' (Never retracing our steps). 
Cromwell set about raising troops who should be ' men of relig- 
ion,' and soon he had raised his famous l)ody of ' Ironsides,' 
among whom no drinking nor disorder nor impiety was allowed ; 
nor swearing, because for every oath a fine of twelve pence was 
paid. There were nearly as many preachers as soldiers in the 
Parliament's army, and much time was spent in listening to ser- 
mons and attending prayer-meetings. The Puritans looked 
upon their enemies as Amalekites, Philistines, and idolaters, 
whom they, as God's chosen people, were commissioned to 
punieh and overthrow. Roundheads was a nickname given, in 
derision, to this army, because of the fashion, generally prev- 
alent among the Puritans, of cropping the hair close. Cava- 
liers and Maiignants were terms applied to the royalist army." 

8. During the next four years a fearful civil war deluged 
the country. The contest began at Edge Hill, in AVarwickshirc, 
by an undecisive action, in which both parties claimed the 
victory ; but in the evening four thousand lay dead in the 
valley of the Red Horse, at the foot of Edge Hill. Of these 
the greater number belons-ed to the kinji's forces. In the fol- 
lowing 3'ear, in a battle near Oxford, Hampden, one of the 
leaders of the rebellion, lost his life. In the midst of their 
reverses Parliament asked aid of the Scots. This they ofiered 
to grant on the condition that the English Parliament and army 
would sign the " National Covenant." By this the Scots hoped 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 135 

to establish Presbyterianism in England. The Independents, 
of whom Oliver Cromwell was leader, managed the Presbj- 
terians by adding to their covenant some of their own ideas, 
and thus giving it something of a civil as Avell as a religious 
character. Its new name was the " Solemn League and Cov- 
enant," to which the dissenters in both kingdoms readily sub- 
scribed. "A large Scottish army under Leslie, Earl of Leven, 
entered England early in the following year, and being joined 
by the Parliament's forces, under Lord. Fairfax and the Earl of 
Manchester, besieged the royalists in the town of York. Oliver 
Cromwell served under Manchester as his lieutenant-general. 
Prince Rupert, hastening from the west, relieved the besieged 
city, and then, against the advice of the Duke of Newcastle, an 
older and better commander, insisted on giving battle to the 
Parliament forces on ]\larston Moor. The result was, the 
bloodiest engagement of the whole war, entire victory to the 
Roundheads, chiefly owing to the desperate valor and able con- 
duct of Oliver Cromwell, and utter ruin to the royalist cause in 
the north. York surrendered, and in its glorious old minster 
the Parliament army and their Scotch allies returned thanks for 
this great victory." 

9. But the Presbyterians and Independents did not well 
agree. The latter charged the former with mismanagino; the 
war, and managed to predominate by the passage in Parlia- 
ment of the celebrated " Self-Denying Ordinance." By this 
ordinance the army was to be reorganized, and all commanders 
who held seats in Parliament, whether in the House of Lords or 
House of Commons, were to resign their commissions. The 
new commander-in-chief was Sir Thomas Fairfax. In favor of 
Oliver Cromvv'cll, who was too able a soldier to lose, the " Self- 
Denying Ordinance " Avas dispensed with. He was kept in the 
army, and soon won, at Naseb}^ the most brilliant of his 
victories over the king. This battle, fought in Northampton- 
shire, in the centre of England, in June, i(j45, was the last in 
which King Charles took personal command. The next year 
witnessed many defeats to the king's forces. Charles now 
turned towards Scotland, where his bravo and gallant partisan, 
the ]\Iarquis of Montrose, at the head of a force of Irish and 
Highlanders, was winning some tine victories. But in this 
direction he was destined to meet disappointments. The mar- 
quis Avas defeated and his forces scattered. The king now re- 
tired to the loval citv of Oxford, but beins: insecure, and 
dreading the approach of Cromwell's troopers, ho resolved to 



136 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

throw himself upon the mercy of the Presbyterian army, 
hoping, through their jealousy of the Ilidependents, and his own 
promises to tolerate their religion, to secure their favor. The 
Scots urged the king to sign the covenant and agree to certain 
propositions, which had originated in the Commons for the 
safety of the kingdom, as the only condition upon which they 
would support him ; but they urged in vain, and finally they de- 
cided to deliver Charles into the hands of the Parliament. In 
June, 1G47, he was taken out of the hands of Parliament and 
placed in the keeping of the army. He was honorably treated 
by the army. Attempts were now made to reconcile the king 
and his country ; but he rejected the only means by which his 
throne was attainable. The deserted monarch indulged the 
foolish hope that he should yet triumph over his enemies. 
Meanwhile Cromwell detected the king s intentions concerning 
himself, and resolved to put no farther trust in him. The king 
now became alarmed, and, escaping from the custody of the 
army, threw himself upon the protection of the governor 
of the Isle of Wight. He partly hoped for protection from 
the governor, and partly thought of this place as the most 
suitable in case he should attempt to escape from the country ; 
but on this island he was made an actual prisoner. INIeanwhile 
the hostility between the Parliament and the army, which Avas 
in truth a quarrel between the Presbyterians and the Indepen- 
dents, became more intense. "The Parliament w^ere still will- 
ing to consider terms of reconciliation with the king, whilst 
Cromwell and the army had resolved that no more treaties should 
be offered him. The latter, to secure possession of his person, 
ordered Lieutenant-Colonel Cobbet to convey Charles from 
Carisbrook, to the solitary, gloomy castle of Hurst, on the 
Hampshire coast. Having possession of the king, a l)and of 
armed soldiers, under Colonel Pride, entered London, sur- 
rounded the Parliament house, and seized the principal mem- 
bers. Many fled, and all that remained were fifty Independents. 
This seizure is generally called Pride's Purge, and the members 
who were left are known as the Rump Parliament. In the 
dreary walls of his prison-house Charles was filled with fears 
for his life. The idea of his subjects bringing tiicir king to 
trial, and passing a judicial sentence upon him, could never have 
entered into the imagination of this firm believer in the divine 
right of kings. When, therefore, on the night of the IGth of 
December, 1648, he heard the creaking of the drawbridge, and 
the tramp of armed men, he feared the hour of his assassination 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



137 



Avas come. Great Avas his relief on finding that their commission 
was to convey him to AYintlsor Castle. On the route Charles 
received touching evidences of the reviving love and loyalty of 
the people towards their discrowned and fallen monarch. On 
the day that his majesty entered Windsor, the fcAv Independents 
Avho now Avere left as the House of Commons appointed a com- 
mittee to draAV up charges against the king. On the Gth of 
January, 1G49, a high court of justice Avas appointed for the 
trial. On the 20th Charles Stuart Avas summoned before it, 
and accused of treason. For scA^en days, in the presence of 
that court, composed of those subjects Avhose poAvcr he had de- 
spised, AA'as King Charles obliged to appear, and listen to the 
fearful charges of criminal misrule Avhich Avere brou2:ht against 
him. On the last day of the trial Charles Stuart, as a 'tyrant, 
traitor, murderer, and public enemy,' Avas sentenced to be ex- 
ecuted. On the 30th of January, 1G49, on a scaffold erected 
in front of the royal palace of Whitehall, the king's head Avas 
laid upon the block. He met death Avith calmness, cA^en cheer- 
fulness. 'I go from a corruptible to an incorruptible crown,' 
Avere his last AA'ords, addressed to Bishop Juxon. When the 
executioner had performed his office, and the scAxred head AA^as 
held up in the sight of the people, ' one dismal, universal groan ' 
broke from the aAve-stricken witnesses of this fearful deed." 

10. In January, 1649, the great seal was broken, and a 
ncAv one made, bearing, on the one side, the Avords, "The Great 
Seal of England," and on the other, "In the first year of free- 
dom by God's blessing restored, 1648." Seldom, if CA'cr, was 
so great a change made in the goA^ern- 
mcnt of a kingdom Avitli so little blood- 
shed. England had j^assed from a 
MonarcliA' to a Republic. The remnant of 
Charles' Long Parliament still continued 
in session, but the House of Peers Avas 
abolished, and their poAA'crs vested in 
a committee, called "The ExecutiA'e 
Council of State." CroniAvell Avas of 
this council. Its secretary Avas John 
IMilton, Avho afterAvards Avrote the 
celebrated poem of "Paradise Lost." 
But in Ireland a fearful insurrection 
Avas raging, and CroniAvell crossed the 
thousand men, and 
secured at the price 




OLIVER CROJnVELL. 



channel Avitli nine 
peace, or rather submission, Avas 
of cruelty, burning, bloodshed, and 



138 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

massacre, such as must forever cast a cloud upon the 
memory of Cromwell. When Cromwell had broken the 
arm of the rebellion, he recrossed the channel into England, 
leaving his sons, Ireton and (after his death) Henry, to com- 
plete the conquest. In almost all foreign countries, and among 
a large chiss of Englishmen, the execution of Charles I. was 
regarded as a murder, and in the American colony of Virginia 
the authority of the new government was denied, and the fugi- 
tive Prince Charles was invited to cross the ocean and become 
king in that province. This invitation had no result, except 
perhaps to win for that colony the title of " Old Dominion." 
But Prince Charles had also been proclaimed king in Scotland, 
and invited to that country. He immediately accepted and 
sailed for Scotland. The English Parliament appointed Crom- 
well connnander-in-chief of the army, and sent him into Scot- 
land. At Dunbar, al)out twenty miles from Edinburgh, Crom- 
well, with only twelve thousand men, was suri-ounded by the 
Scots, whose forces numbered twenty-seven thousand. The 
latter were well posted, too, on the hills which rise above the 
town. It was unwise to attack them in this strong position, 
and Cromwell waited. On the second day, the Scots, animated 
by hopes of a certain victory, rushed down from the hills ; 
whereupon Cromwell joyously exclaimed : "The Lord hath de- 
livered them into our hands." On the morning of the 3d of 
September a mist, which had hung over the field, rolled away, 
and the clear sunlight revealed the contending armies. " Now, 
let God arise, and let his enemies be scattered," shouted the 
Puritan general, as he rushed into the conflict. Ere it ended, 
four thousand of the Scots army lay upon the bloody field, and 
ten thousand prisoners swelled the train of the conquerors. 
Cromwell offered praise for this victory, in the glowing language 
of King David, by ordering the 107th psalm to be sung upon 
the battle-field. Edinburgh, Glasgow, and other towns, sub- 
mitted to the Puritan army. The following year, whilst Crom- 
well was besieging Edinburgh Castle, Charles gathered an 
army and marched into England, hoping to be joined by the 
loyalists, and, with their aid, to gain the English crown. When 
this news reached Cromwell he started at once in pursuit. At 
Worcester, on the 3d of September, the anniversary of the 
battle of Dunbar, this praying, fighting, praising, Puritan gen- 
eral gained another great victory, which he called "his crown- 
ing mercy." No doubt he felt it to be such, for, had royalists 
and Presbj^terians united in support of Prince Charles, the 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 189 

power of Cromwell and the army might have been broken. As 
it was, Charles Stuart became a fugitive, indebted for his life 
to the faithful loyalty of a family of Stafford^shire wood-cutters. 
In the humble cottage of the Penderells, amid the woody shades 
of Boscobel, he lay concealed for many weeks. On one occa- 
sion the thick foliage of a friendly oak sheltered him from Crom- 
well's troopers, who, passing directly under the tree, uttered, 
in gay tones, their contident hope of ol)taining the price set 
upon the head of the fugitive Stuart. However, Prince Charles 
succeeded in escaping to France. Meanwhile Cromwell marched 
to London, where he was admired as a conqueror. 

11. During these years England was not only rising to 
self-rule at home, but was rapidly advancing in power on the 
seas. Admiral Blake achieved many grand victories, and in 
1652-3, in a naval war Avith the Dutch, succeeded in a tinal 
triumph. In 1653, after an adroit struggle with Parliament, 
Cromwell had himself declared " Lord Protector of the Com- 
monwealth of England." The powers of government were to 
be shared by a Parliament. For a while the Protector had a 
brilliant administration. His foreign policy was very successful, 
and England became the leading state in Europe. Cromwell 
was urged to proclaim himself king ; but he rejected the 
otfer, and in 1658 he died, his death being hastened partly 
through domestic atllictions. Richard Cromwell made an at- 
tempt to succeed him, but was too weak, and on the 25th day 
of April a new Parliament, consisting of both Lords and Com- 
mons, as before the Commonwealth, assembled at Westminster. 
On the 1st of May a letter from Charles was presented to this 
body, who, after a few hours, voted a loyal answer to the 
absent prince. All the slumbering feeling of loyalty seemed 
suddenly to awaken, and the nation which had brought his 
royal father to the block now rtnt the air with the shouts of 
"Long live King Charles II. !" The new monarch, with his 
brother, the Duke of York, landed at Dover on the 25th of the 
same month. On the 2'Jth of jNIay, 1660, the exiled Stuart 
was restored to the throne of England. lie entered London 
through streets hung with tapestry and garlands, flowers streAvn 
in his path, and shouts of rejoicing rending the air. The re- 
turning tide of loyalty overflowed the nation with a force which 
threatened utter clestrnction to every landmark of constitutional 
right which the last thirty years had set up. 

12. Charles II. reigned until 1685, when he died, — died, 
it is believed, a secret communicant to the Church of Rome. 



140 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, • 

The crown passed to his brother James, Duke of York, he 
hav'iner no issue. The reisrn of Charles II. was characterized 
by his great cruelty to those who had persecuted his father, 
and even the body of Cromwell, with those of others, w\as taken 
from the tomb and indecently treated. James II. reigned in 
wickedness, and lost the crown in trying to reestablish the 
Roman Catholic religion in the kingdom. Seeing no hope in 
James II., the nation turned to William, Prince of Orange, who 
had married the Princess Mary, the eldest daughter of James. 
The whole nation now flew to William, and James, seeing his 
danger, escaped, after a second attempt, in flight to France, 
xifter the flight of James a convention declared the throne 
Vacant, and invited William and Mary, Prince and Princess of 
Orange, to fill it. 

13. In the reign of William III. England became a con- 
stitutional limited monarchy, under which form of government 
she still progresses in her grand march among the nations. Jn 
matters of religion the king was tolerant, and at length he 
prevailed upon Parliament to pass a bill granting free toleration 
to all Christians, excepting Roman Catholics. The exiled king, 
James II., died at the palace of St. Germains, in 1701, and one 
year later, 1702, William III. died, and was succeeded by 
Anne, the second daughter of James II. Though a Stuart 
she was a Protestant, and no opposition was made to her suc- 
cession. England, during the reign of Anne and her prede- 
cessor, was engaged in a war wMtli the French king, Louis XIV. , 
but through the successive victories of the English the French 
power was humbled, and might have been quite or nearly de- 
stroyed had it not been for the fierce contests between the Tories 
and AVhigs at home, by which the English arm was weakened. 
The reign of Queen Anne was distinguished by the writings 
of Addison, Swift, and Pope, aixl other distinguished poets and 
scholars. 

14. Queen Anne died in 1714, and was succeeded by 
George, elector of Hanover. He was the grandson of 
Elizabeth, the daughter of James I. , who had married Frederick, 
King of Bohemia, of whom mention has i)reviously been made. 
At the death of Anne the Whigs supplanted the Tories in 
power. In the third year of the reign of King George I. was 
passed the Septennial Bill, prolonging the duration of Parlia- 
ment to seven years. Under the triennial law the election of 
members every three years had caused great disturbances, 
owing to the excited state of political feeling between the 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 141 

Whigs and Tories. The coutinuaiice of the same Parliament 
for seven years was therefore a beneficial measure, and con- 
tributed greatly to the tranquillity of the country. In the year 
1711 the public debt of England amounted to ten millions of 
pounds, which was thought at that time quite insupportable. 
To get rid of this great national incumbrance in the course of 
a certain prescribed number of years, a speculator, named Sir 
John Blount, proposed, in 1719, the following plan: To make 
a certain wealthy and prosperous commercial companj^ knoAvn 
as the South Sea Company, the sole public creditor ; then to 
increase this company's privileges and monopolies to such a 
degree as to make it enormously rich, and thus enable it not 
only to pay otf the national debt, but also to lend money to 
government at a low rate of interest. Immense numbers to 
whom the government owed money bought stock in this eom- 
pan}^ which, instead of being able to fulfil its engagements, 
failed, and involved in ruin thousands who had put their trust 
in it. This scheme is usually called the South Sea Bubble. 
Sir Robert Walpole earnestly opposed it from the first, and, 
when the bubble burst, did all that a wise financier could do to 
lessen the mischief and misery which it brought upon the 
nation." 

15. In 1727 George I. died very suddenly in his carriage, 
and his son, who was crowned George II., came to the throne, 
For fifteen years longer the administration of Sir R,ol)ert AVal- 
pole, Mdio had become prime minister in the year 1721, con- 
tinued with great advantage to the nation. It was an adminis- 
tration of peace. He sought to advance his country in those 
arts which contribute to social prosperity, and cared little for 
the doubtful glories of the battle-field. Notwithstanding these 
peaceful dispositions, in which he was greatly aided by a similar 
policy on the part of the good Cardir.al Fleury, then prime 
minister of France, Walpole, rather than resign his office, 
yielded his sense of right and justice to the clamors of the 
nation, and engaged in a war with Spain. The English people, 
indignant against the Spaniards because they searched English 
ships engaged in unlawful traffic with the Spanish colonics in 
America, and, lured on by the hope of the rich spoils Avhich 
the conquest of those colonies would aflbrd, were loud in their 
rejoicings Mdieu the war was declared. Walpole, on the day 
that the proclamation was made, hearing joyful peals resound- 
ing from the church-bells, exclaimed: "They may ring the 
bells now ; before long they will be Avringing their hands." 



142 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

And SO it proved. The war was disastrous. Walpole l)ecame 
unpopular witli the nation, and in 1742, after having guided 
the helm of state with ability and success for twenty years, was 
compelled to resign his post as prime minister. Before Wal- 
pole"s resignation, however, England had engaged in another 
war by becoming the ally of Maria Theresa of Austria. This 
noble and high-spirited queen had been robbed of a portion of 
her territory by the King of Prussia, whilst the elector of 
Bavaria disputed her accession to the imperial throne. England 
espoused the cause of the injured Maria Theresa, whilst France 
sided with Frederick of Prussia and the Bavarian prince. 
Some of the most important operations during the course of 
this war, as far as Franco and England were concerned, were 
carried on in their colonial possessions in America, as we have 
already seen. 

16. During the reign of this king England was invaded by 
a Stuart pretender, who raised an army in the north of Scot- 
land, and did some damage before escaping again to France. 
In thej^ear 1748 the contending states of Europe entered into 
a treaty of peace, which was signed at Aix-la-Chapelle. ' A few 
years later another contest, called, from its duration, "The 
Seven Years' AVar," engaged the nations of Europe. The 
position of parties, however, was greatly changed. England 
and France were still enemies ; but France fought with Maria 
Theresa, and England was the ally of Frederick of Prussia. 
The opening scenes of this war were laid in the French and 
English colonies of America. During 1759 England suffered 
a heavy naval defeat, through the neglect of Admiral Byng, 
who was court-marshalled and shot for liis fimlt. Soon after, 
William Pitt (afterwards Earl of Chatham) became prime 
minister, and the war assumed a new and more promising 
aspect. In America success crowned the English and colonial 
troops. Qucl)ec fell before the heroic valor of General Wolfe, 
and the French colonial possessions of America were given him 
for his country in the hour of glorious death. 

17. But before the glory of England's arms had been re- 
trieved in America, and Wolfe had fallen on the Plains of 
Abraham, another young and ardent English hero had laid the 
foundation of British Empire in India. The East India 
Company estal)lished factories for trade in Hindostan. On 
the eastern coast they had built Fort St. George. From these 
boginnings sprang the flourishing town of Madras. A little 
farther south, on the Coromandel coast, was built Fort St. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 143 

David, whilst on the Hoogly, Fort William, the origin of the 
splendid city of Calcutta, arose a few years before Peter the 
Great had laid the foundations of his capital at St. Petersburg, 
on the banks of the Neva. On the Malabar coast, Bombay was 
the important settlement. All these had been founded before 
the close of the seventeenth century. However, in 1G70 the 
French appeared to share the mercantile profits of that region. 
In that year the French had established factories on the Hoogly, 
and also at Pondicherry, about eighty miles below Madras, in 
the large southern province of India known as the Carnatic. 
When France and En2:land were at war, their colonies, whether 
in India or America, were involved in the same calamity. In 
the year 1746 Fort St. George fell into the hands of the 
French. The garrison, surrendering after a short but brave 
defence, were promised honorable treatment. This promise 
was broken, and they were carried prisoners to Pondicherry. 
Numbers of them contrived to escape, and among these, 
habited in the disguise of a Hindoo, Pobert Clive, a young 
merchant's clerk of twenty-one, fled to Fort St. David. Such 
was the position of afl'airs when the treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle 
obliged the French to restore Madras. We shall iind, however, 
that, as allies of the native princes, the French and English in 
India carried on hostilities even when the mother countries' 
were at peace. 

18. From the early part of the sixteenth century India had 
been governed by a potentate called "The Great Mogul," who 
resided in much pomp at his capital of Delhi, and appointed 
viceroys, who, nominally under him, but truly by their own 
power, ruled the provinces of Flindostan. Of the splendor of 
the court of Aurungzebe, one of the greatest of the Great 
Moguls, descriptions are given, which surpass the wonders of 
a fairy tale. A French traveller, who visited Aurungzebe's 
court in the year 1GG,3, tells us of his "seven splendid thrones; 
one covered with diamonds, another Avith rubies, with emeralds, 
or with pearls." Whilst the Great Mogul was seated on his 
Peacock Throne, so called from its back being formed by jew- 
elled representations of peacocks' tails, thirty splendid horses 
stood ready caparisoned, with bridles set with precious gems, 
and a large and valuable jewel hanging from the neck of each. 
Elephants were taught to kneel before the throne, and do hom- 
age with their trunks. The French traveller must have been 
struck with the insigniticant pomp of the court of his Grand 
Monarque, then the most splendid in Europe, when he con- 



144 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

trusted it with the surpassing magnificence of this oriental 
despot. But the great Aurungzebe, wlien the years of his 
earthly glory had numbered nearly one hundred, was gathered 
to his fathers, and the throne of Delhi was mounted l)y another 
ISIogul, as great in outward state and splendor, but of feeble 
character. He had no power to withstand the gradual but 
sure progress of the strange nation from fifteen thousand miles 
afar, who in God's providence were destined to overthrow the 
poAver of the Great Mogul, and plant a Christian dominion in 
India. This, too, they were to accomplish in less than half a 
century. 

19. Meanwhile the powers of the viceroys in the provinces 
greatly increased. In the quarrels continually arising among 
them, the French and English interfered, taking, of course, 
opposite sides. In the wars which followed, the French and 
their Indian allies were so siiccessfid that they threatened to 
drive the English from the Carnatic. By the year 1751 the 
latter were reduced to great extremity. The nabob of Arcot, 
the only Indian prince remaining faithful to their interest, was 

•besieged by the French in his last stronghold, which, if cap- 
tured, would render the victors undisputed masters of the 
country. At this juncture Robert Clive planned and executed 
an expedition which saved British India. The English, feebly 
garrisoned at JVIadras and Fort St. David, could spare no mili- 
tary force to send to the relief of their aWy. Clive raised a 
little band of five hundred men, three hundred of whom were 
Sepoys (natives who made miserable soldiers), and placed 
over it ofiiccrs, who, like himself, were mostly merchants' 
clerks. With this force he suddenly marched to Arcot, the 
capital of the Carnatic, hoping to excite fears for the safet}^ of 
this important place, and thus draw the French and Indian 
foes from their attack on the English ally. Advancing dur- 
insf a thunder-storm, he made himself master of the strong town 
and fortress. The French ally sent a detachment to recover 
Arcot, but Clive held the town and effectually restored the 
English in the Carnatic. A few years later Clive gained other 
victories, which firmly established the power of the English in 
India. 

20. In the northern province of Bengal there ruled, in 
1756, the Nabob Surajah Dowlah, a cruel and detestable ty- 
rant. Becoming jealous of the English, who he believed had 
accumulated great ■wealth in their factories at Calcutta, he ad- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 145 

vancecl against that place with a^ large army. After a fruitless 
attempt at defence, the garrison of Fort William surrendered, 
under promise that their lives should be spared. But the 
prisoners were left in charge of the officers of the guard and 
were thrust in the "Black Hole," as it was called, — the dun- 
geon of the fort, only fourteen by eighteen feet in size ; its air- 
holes, only two small windows ; one hundred and forty-live 
European men and women, some of them suflering from recent 
wounds, and this in the height of the Indian summer-solstice, 
when the fiercest heat was raging. The horrors of that night 
were beyond description. Amid agonizing cries of "Water; 
Water ! " these wretched beings trampled each other down to 
get near the air-holes, outside the bars of which were held 
skins of water ; but, as if in awful aggravation of their misery, 
these were too large to get through the grating. Meanwhile 
their fiend-like jailers made most inhuman mirth at their 
fearful condition, and held the lanterns high to gaze upon the 
scene within, as though it had been the struggle of brute 
beasts, intended for the amusement of beings scarcely less bru- 
tal. Ere morning dawned, a fearful silence reigned in the 
Black Hole of Calcutta. Of one hundred and forty-six human 
beings who had been there imprisoned , twenty-three alone came 
out through the passage made between dead bodies. Strange 
to say, one of these was an Englishwoman. When the news 
of this dreadful outrage reached Madras, the horror and indiir- 
nation of the English knew no bounds. Clive proceeded with 
an army to Calcutta, and on the 2d of January, 1757, regained 
possession of the town and fort. In a few months he fought 
Surajah Dowlah at Plassey, gained a complete and brilliant 
victory, with three thousand men fighting against fifty thousand, 
drove the inhuman monster from his throne, and laid the foun- 
dation of English power in Northern India. Hitherto the 
East India Company had been only merchants and traders ; 
henceforth we shall find them conquerors and sovereigns. 
The battle of Plassey was fought on the 23d of June, 1757. 
Three years later Sir Eyre Coote won from the French the 
battle of Wandewash. This victory, together with the fall of 
Pondicherry, which occurred within a year, established the 
supremacy of the English in the Carnatic as firmly as that of 
Plassey had done in Bengal. Clive, Avhose health had become 
impaired, returned to England in the year 1760. He was 
created a peer, with the title of Baron Clive of Plassey. In 



146 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

1765 he returned to India as Governor of Bengal. In the year 
1760, before the news of the great victories of Wandewash and 
Pondicherry had reached England, George II. died, and was 
succeeded by his grandson, George III. 



CHAPTER XI. 

CANADA FROM 1760 TO 1777. 

BRITISH RULE — ADMINISTRATION OF GENERAL MURRAY GOVERNMENT OF 

GENERAL CARLETON — EVENTS DURING THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR. 

1 . Three years after England had conquered Canada a treaty 
of peace was concluded between Great Britain, France, Spain, 
and Portugal, and signed at Paris in February, 1763. By this 
treaty France ceded to England the whole of her colonial pos- 
sessions in America, with the exception of Louisiana and the small 
fishing-islands of St. Pierre and Miquelon, near the coast of 
Newfoundland, and received back Martinique and Guadaloupe 
in the West Indies, England retaining Grenada and the Grena- 
dines, while Spain exchanged Florida for Cuba. This treaty 
ended the long struggle between these powers. 

2. Nearly all the French military oiScers and troops, as 
also many of the chief inhabitants, returned to France as soon 
as they relinquished all hope of the restoration of the French 
power in Canada ; and their return was facilitated by the 
English, who thought themselves fortunate to thus quietly rid 
themselves of so powerful an element of disturbance. It was 
well known on both sides that the process of assimilation 
between the French and English would be very slow, so differ- 
ent was the character of the social and political institutions of 
the two races. "Independently of the dissimilarity in national 
tastes and habits, the relations of the French colony with the 
Imperial government were essentially different from those 
which connected a British colony with the mother country. 
The French colony was a child of the State. Everything in it 
of a civil nature was under official patronage or political surveil- 
lance, while religious matters were subject to vigorous ecclesi- 
astical control. "Two principal objects engrossed the attention 
of the French colonists, — the extension of the peltry traffic, 
and the conversion of the Indian tribes. As a means of carry- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 147 

ing out these two great projects, exploration and discovery 
formed a chief feature of French colonial life." In the English 
colony of that clay, on the contrary, the government was as 
much a civil and social board as an embodiment of the will of 
the royal authority. Matters of trade were but slightly inter- 
fered with, the colonists being left, for the most part, to them- 
selves and their own modes of development. This was why 
the English engaged themselves so little in enterprises of ex- 
ploration and discovery. When, therefore, we find the colo- 
nists in conflict, it was generally concerning matters of trade 
and influence over the Indian tribes ; but with the fall of Canada 
these struggles were forever put to an end. 

3. Canada was under military rule during the period from 
the fall of Canada, in the winter of 1759-60, to the treaty of 
peace, in 1763, when General Murray was appointed the tirst 
governor-general of British Canada, in place of the commander- 
in-chief. Lord Amherst, who had administered a rigid military 
government during the period mentioned ; the boundaries of 
the new province of Canada, under British colonial government, 
were " contracted by the separation from it of New Brunswick 
and Labrador. The old district divisions of Quebec, Montreal, 
and Three Rivers were retained. General Murray, with an 
executive council, governed the Quebec ; General Gage, the 
Montreal ; and Colonel Burton, the Three Rivers District. Two 
other districts — the St. Maurice and the St. Francis — were 
shortly afterwards set apart. Justice was administered in each 
district, chiefly by military or militia oflicers, subject to an 
appeal to the governor. This system was not popular, and 
only continued in operation for a short time, until a court of 
king's bench and a court of common pleas were instituted. 
The laws and customs of France were, however, foUow^ed in 
matters affecting land." At this time the population of Canada 
did not exceed eighty thousand, including eight thousand 
Indians. The country had been exhausted by desolating 
wars, and the peaceful arts had languished into decay and 
ruin. 

4. In 1766 General Murray was recalled, and General 
(afterwards Sir Guy) Carleton was appointed governor-general, 
and, as we shall meet this distinguished nobleman frequently 
in succeeding chapters, "we may as well make his acquaintance 
here. Sir Guy Carleton (Lord Dorchester) was among the 
most eminent men who have governed Canada. He was born 
in England, in 1725, entered the army, and took a prommeut 



148 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

part in the siege and capture of Quebec, under "VYolfe, in 1759. 
He was for his services promoted to the rank of brigadier- 
general, and during the governor-general's (Murray's) absence 
from Canada, in 17(37, lie administered the government. Being 
in England in 1770, he aided in the passage of the Quebec Act 
of 1771. In 1774 he returned as governor-general, and suc- 
cessfully resisted the attack of the Americans upon Quebec in 
177G. In 1778 he returned to England, and was knighted by 
the king. In 1782 he succeeded Sir Henry Clinton as com- 
mander-in-chief of the royal forces in America. In 1786 he 
was created Lord Dorchester for his distinguished services, 
and from that time until 1796 (with an exception of two years) 
he remained in Canada as governor-general. He was thus con- 
nected with Canada for the long period of thirty-six years. 
During this time he acquired great distinction by his prudence, 
tirmncss, and sagacit3^ When he retired from the govern- 
ment it was with the regret of all classes. 

5. In August of the year of his first appointment. Governor 
Carleton, and Governor Sir Henry Moore, of New York, met 
at Lake Champlain, with a party of surveyors, to detemiine the 
boundaries between their respective provinces. On this occa- 
sion the boundary stone was set up where afterwards the iron 
monument was reared at the time of the Ashburton Treaty of 
1842, But, notwithstanding Governor Carleton's great prudence 
and impartiality, dissatisfaction began to manifest itself, be- 
cause of the continued administration of civil offices solely by 
military men, and many of the inhabitants left the province. 
Memorials and complaints on the subject were sent to England ; 
but these received no reply save instructions to the governor to 
inquire concerning the truthfulness of the complaints. The 
governor went to England, in 1770, to report concerning the 
irritation of his French subjects, and did not return till 1774, 
in which year the British ministry submitted to Parliament the 
bill which was finally passed, entitled a "Bill for reconstructing 
the Government of the Province of Quebec." This bill is 
known in Parliament as the " Quebec Act," and it provided, 
among many other things in favor of the French Catholics, for 
the free exercise of the Roman Catholic religion, for the estab- 
lishment of the Legislative Council, and for the introduction of 
the criminal law of England into the provinces ; but it declared 
that in all matters of controversy, relative to property and civil 
rights, resort should be had to the laws of Canada as the rule 
for the decision of the same. " Thus, the enjoyment of the 



engla:n'd, and the united states. 



149 



religion, the protection under the civil laws, of French Canada 
were conlirmed to tlic inhabitants by Imperial statute ; and a 
system of local self-government was introduced. The act was 
distasteful to the British residents, but it gave unmixed satisfac- 
tion to the French Canadians ; and, at a time when the old 
English colonies were wavering in their attachment to the 
British crown, it confirmed the French Canadians in their 
allegiance to the king." This was the price, it may as well be 
said, at which England i^urchased the loyalty of her French- 
American subjects duringthe Revolutionary War, — a price which 
has taxed Canada bitterly to paj', and under which our country 
has suffered much, and is still ill at rest; but, in the light of 
saving Canada to British rule, the price Avas not extravagant. 
It can only be regretted that statesmanship could do nothing 
better. 

6. A detailed account in the following chapters of the earlier 
revolutionary events makes it unnecessary to speak of them 
here. The Americans failed, after repeated attempts, to secure 
the sympathy and cooperation of Canadians, and Congress, there- 
fore, despatched a twofold expedition, to secure the British 
posts in Canada, and to develop a more friendly feeling of the 
inhal)itants. One army from 
Boston, under Gen. Benedict 
Arnold, was sent against Quebec. 
The other army, under Gen. 
Eichard ISIontgomery and Schuy- 
ler, marched against INIontrcal. 
On its way it suri)rised and cap- 
tured the important forts of 
Ticonderoga and Crown Point, 
on Lake Champlain, M'ith all their 
munitions of war ; and, in suc- 
cession, it also took the posts at 
Isle aux Noix, St. Johns, Cham- 
bly, and Sorel. A still more 
flattering address was then issued 
by Congress and extensively cir- 
culated i n Canada. Many people 
of both British and French origin 
heartily sympathized with its objects. The governor-general 
(Sir Guy Carleton) was much eml)arrassed by such disloyal 
sympathy ; and, although aided l)y the clergy and seigueurs, he 
could scarcely collect a sufficient force to stop the progress of the 




^^%^. 







BENEDICT AENOLD. 



150 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

Americans, to whoso victorious standard man}" British and French 
Canadians had flocked. Montreal, after a sliglit resistance, 
surrendered to the invaders. Gen. Carleton had even to fly in 
disguise to Quebec." Here he found many of the inhabitants 
desirous of joining the Americans. These ho corapolled to leave 
the city, and proceeded at once to organize the loyal militia, 
with a view to defending the place. 

7. Canada, with the exception of Quebec, was now virtually 
in the hands of the Americans, and God grant it may never be 
so again, under similar circumstances ! The capture of the 
ancient capital would therefore have brought the whole country 
under the Congress. Carleton had but sixteen hundred 
men, of whom six hundred were raw militia. General Arnold 
arrived, made an unsuccessful attack, and retired to await Gen. 
IMontgomery. On his ari-ival an attack was made, in which the 
latter was killed and the former wounded. The Americans 
withdrew part of their forces, but still continued the siege. 
Early in May, 1776, however, they fell back to Three Rivers, 
but were vigorously followed by Carleton, who had now 
been reinforced. lie captured their artillery and stores, 
and put them to route. ^^ In the mean time Congress was not 
idle. It despatched further reinforcements to Canada in June, 
1776, under Gen. Sullivan, but without etFect ; and again issued 
an animated and characteristic address to the Canadian people. 
Three special commissioners — Benjamin Franklin, Charles Car- 
roll, of CarroUton (who was accompanied by his brother John, 
afterwards Archbishop Carroll, of Baltimore), and Samuel 
Chase — Avere despatched to treat with the Canadians. Their em- 
bassy signally failed ; for the inhabitants had by this time learned 
by experience to regard the Americans as enemies rather than 
as friends. Strong ellbrts were also made by the Americans to 
detach the Iroquois from the British standard, but without 
eflect. Under the able chieftainship of the brave Joseph Brant, 
or Thaycndanega, the Iroquois, or Six Nation Indians, re- 
mained fast and loyal allies of king George III." 

8. Joseph Brant (Thaycndanega), a INIohawk Indian of 
pure blood, was born on the banks of the Ohio, in 1742. He 
received a good education, in Connecticut. In the Revolutionary 
War of 1776 he became the ally of the English; and, as a 
prominent chief among the Iroquois, he influenced several can- 
tons of the celebrated league to join the British standard. Dur- 
ing that war he was chiefly engaged in raids upon the border 
settlements of New York and Pennsylvania, with John, the son 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 

«C 



151 



of Sir Wm. Johnson, and Col. Butler. During the Ecvolution 
he held a colonel's commission from the \dn<^. At the close 
of the war he removed to Canada, 
and obtained from Governor Hal- 
dimand, for the Six Nations, the 
grant of a territory on the Grand 
river, six miles in width, from its 
source to its mouth. The town 
of Brantford, or Brant's ford, on 
the river, was named after him ; 
as was also the county of Brant, 
in the same locality, and the toAvn- 
ship of Thaycndancga, on the Bay 
of Quinte, where a number of the 
Mohawks had settled. He trans- 
lated the whole of the Gospel of 
St. Mark into the IMohawk lan- 
guage, and in many ways exerted 
himself to promote the temporal 
and spiritual welfare of his people. 
He was greatly respected and l)cloved by them and by the 
English. He visited England in 1783 ; .and died near Bur- 
lington, Ontario, on November 24, 1807, aged sixty-tive years. 
His remains were removed to the Mokawk village, Grand 
river, and interred near the church which ho had erected 
there. His son John subsequently led the Mohawks at the 
victorious battle of Quecnstown, in October, 1812. Joseph 
Brant was a noble specimen of a Christian Indian, and did 
much to alleviate the horrors of Indian warfare during the 
period of the American Bevolutionary War. 

9. With English reinforcements Canada had noAV a better 
heart to resist her foes and deceivers. The American invading 
force was driven out of Canada, and even from the forts of 
Ticonderoga and Crown Point, on Lake Champlain. However, 
under Gen. Burgoyne's poor management, the campaign ended 
in disaster in October, 1777. 




1 

Thaycndancga (Joseph Brant.) 



152 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



CHAPTEE Xn. 

THE WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE, 1760 TO 1774. 

THE WAR OF THE REVOLUTION THE CAUSES WHICH LEU TO THE REVOLT — A 

SKETCH OF THE WAR WHICH LOST THE COLONIES TO ENGLAND. 

1. Turning aside, for a few moments, to trace events in 
these revolting Anglo-American colonies, I find myself in a 
delicate position. It has ever been a practice of Canadian and 
American historians to color these records to suit the taste of 
their respective readers. This was an easy matter, as but one 
class was expected to read their works ; not so, however, 
with my book, which must be read in both countries, and in both 
of which I desire my readers to perceive my loyalty to the 
British crown, together with my complete impartiality in treat- 
ing these matters. On the one hand, Americans will prize my 
work the higher because of its independence; while, on the 
other, I fear that some of my own countr3^men will, without a 
cause, think me American, because I cannot find a sutficient 
excuse for the wholesale condemnation of every American act 
during the war. This I frankly confess I cannot do, while I 
regret, as much as any one can, the struggle, or the termination 
of it, which separated America from England, yet, the more I 
study the history of the Eevolution, the more I am convinced 
that it was not less England's lame policy than America's im- 
pudence that worked the unfortunate separation. But to my 
task. 

2. There was leisure, after the French and Indian war, for 
men to consider the circumstances in which they stood. There 
was no longer an enemy at their doors stirring the worst blood 
of the Indians to spoliation and rapine, and the animosities 
which had separated the diiferent nationalities from each other 
were gradually sinking to rest. Men were becoming neither 
British, French, Swedes, nor Dutch, but iVmerican ; and in that 
sentiment there was, in one sense, true patriotism. The colo- 
nies, thirteen in all, numbered little short of two millions at the 
close of Pontiac's war, and there was but a small remnant of 
the religious rancor which at one time stirred souls against 
each other ; so that there was more room for the consideration 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 153 

of the claims of all mankind to equal justice in matters social 
and political. 

3. Learning commenced to take root in the soil of America 
from the first landing, in December, 1620, at Forefathers' Rock, 
as the people were deeply impressed with the value of their 
sacred literature ; and nine colleges, beside numerous schools, 
had been already established in the colonies, the endowment 
for Harvard from the funds of the colonists commencing when 
the New England settlement was only sixteen years old. Such 
institutions were due to the people themselves in every instance 
save that of one college. Consequent upon a love for learning, 
and zeal for the instruction of the community, came an early 
demand for the labors of the printing-press, which in the year 
1639 w^as brought into operation in Cambridge, and upon the 
accession of King James II. was especially interdicted by royal 
proclamation. Most of the books pul^lished then were theo- 
logical efiusions, chiefly sermons, but in 1690 the first news- 
paper appeared in Boston, bearing date Thursday, September 
25. The first number of "Publick Occurrences" contained so 
many unsound truths that the government censured Benjamin 
Harris, and suppressed the issue after only one paper had been 
circulated. The " News Letter " was published in Boston, in 
1704 ; and among some others, the best paper of those early 
days, the " New England Courant," published by James Frank- 
lin, and written for by the compositor, his brother, Benjamin 
Franklin, came into existence in 1721, in the same town. The 
number did not very rapidly increase, but the influence of 
journalism was felt extensively. Besides the li])rary at Har- 
vard, and some small beginnings in other colleges, there was a 
public circulating 1 library in New York. The first action for 
libel tried in the colonies was an attempt to suppress the "New 
York Weekly Journal," in 1735 ; but the effort was defeated by 
the jury. There w^as no newspaper in Virginia until 1736, and 
then it was a government organ. 

4. Industries and manufactures were identical with the 
commencement of the New England colomes, and even in Vir- 
ginia, where such employments were less kindly embraced, 
necessity compelled the settlers to work or starve. Agricul- 
ture commanded first attention, and even the Indians learned 
something in that direction, as one of the tribes, having pro- 
cured a supply of powder, planted it as seed, expecting to reap 
a harvest of ammunition. Some kinds of manufactures, rudely 
carried on, were* prosecuted from the beginning of the colonies, 



154 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

and in Boston ship-building dates from the first year. Cloths 
and cloth-weaving, shoes, paper, hats, farming implements, 
furniture, and cutlery were manufactured, although there was a 
long series of complaints that English manufactures were injured 
by such action. Commerce was crippled by the operation of 
the English Navigation Laws, which were supplemented by 
regulations under which it was provided that the productions 
of the colonies must be shipped to England in British vessels 
only, and that no manufactures nor supplies of any kind should 
be sent into any colonial port except through the intervention 
of English vessels, sailing from the ports of that country. These 
restrictions were not rigorously observed by the colonists, but 
wherever the government was strong enough the system Avas 
enforced. Besides these important industries the fisheries of 
Xewfoundland were improved as far as possible, and whaling 
enterprises to the far north Avcre also undertaken. 

5. Travel and trafiic between the colonies come next in im- 
portance to industries and intellectual culture, and are identi- 
fied with each. For a long time journeys were made on foot, 
on horseback, or by means of coasting sloops. From New 
York to Philadelphia was a three days' trip, with fair winds, 
and a wagon ran twice a week between New York and differ- 
ent localities in New Jersey. It was an immense improvement 
when conveyances, called "flying-machines," for their speed, in 
1766, made the journey from Philadelphia to New York in two 
days, and a stage-route from Providence to Boston occupied 
the same time. The post-otfice had been inaugurated, and its 
influence was so highly appreciated, that Franklin, Avhen post- 
master-general, occupied five months in his carriage, travelling 
through the colonies to perfect the arrangements of his depart- 
ment, and he took an extra horse with him for occasional ser- 
vice. The monthly mail was commenced in 1672, between 
Boston and New York, by way of Hartford, Connecticut. 

6. Sumptuary laws and customs reveal the life of a people, 
and New England lived by line and rule. Scriptural teaching 
was the standard of conduct, ministers were the recognized 
censors, and were themselves above reproach for some time. 
Cards and games were prohibited. Sabbath-breaking was an 
ofience, and a man who shot some birds on Sunday was 
whipped. Tavern-keeping was strictly under surveillance, and 
drunkards could not buy liquor. Connecticut forbade tobacco 
to youths under twenty, nor could any one indulge more than 
once in twenty-four hours, and he must then be distant from 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 155 

any residence. The clothing to be worn by the different 
classes was regulated in rcgavd to their wealth and condition. 
Grand dames rode pillion with their husbands, theological 
questions were engrossing topics, and a reproof in church was 
the ultimatum of social severity. The manners of New York 
closely approximated in simplicity to those of New England, 
jplus a tritle more of sociality, which remains crystallized in the 
custom of New Year's visitings. 

7. The plantations in the southern colonies, wherein large 
estates and numerous servants, often negro slaves, made the 
rule, had an effect in changing the manners of the people. 
The negroes had their own quarters, and were Idndly treated 
generally. Tobacco was the staple production, and the planter 
made his own establishment serve every purpose. He shipped 
his own tobacco to agents in London, ground his own flour 
from corn and wheat raised by his slaves ; his bondsmen were 
taught such trades as he required in operation ; luxury was the 
rule among such men ; labor fell more and more daily into dis- 
repute ; hospitality was the rule everywhere, and display l^e- 
came the fashion in dress, furniture, and equipages, stamping 
characteristics upon a people which may yet be seen in action. 

8. Schools and teachers were obliged to labor under diffi- 
culties in the southern colonies, as the governors appointed 
from England were in some measure opposed to such innova- 
tions upon the rule of ignorance, especially for the working- 
class. Free schools Avere denounced in connection with print- 
ing-presses, by Governor Berkeley, in Virginia, with great 
emphasis ; but in Maryland, under the rule of the Baltimore 
family, there were free schools in 1696, and in 1712 Charles- 
ton, South Carolina, followed that example. Private schools 
were more generally estal)lished, and church rule was ample 
for all purposes. The minister had a farm of one hundred 
acres, and a share in the best corn and tobacco first gathered. 
Non-attendance at church, or disrespectful words to the minis- 
ter, were offences punished among the slaves by whipping and 
deprivation of food, with cumulative sentences of terrible 
import. Even freemen were held under heavy restrictions in 
many parts, fines being substituted for corporal punishments. 
Slave-owners in Georgia Avere liable to a penalty of twenty-five 
dollars if they failed to send their slaves to church. 

9. Massachusetts and Connecticut esteemed education next 
to religion itself, and with the colonists life was a worthless 
burden, unless sanctified by worship. The endowment of 



156 HISTORY or DOMINION OF CANADA, 

Harvard University, then knovra as a seminary at Cambridge, 
by tlie town of Boston, when the settlement was only six years 
old, tells its own story, unsurpassed in the world's history. 
The invested fimds of the institution, besides the grounds, 
buildings, libraries, and other property, amounted in 1873 to 
two million seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars. Since 
16-42 there have only been five years without a graduating 
class ; nearly thirteen thousand persons have received degrees 
there, and fully half that number are now alive. The people 
at one time, when money was scarce, contributed from each 
family a peck of corn, or one shilling, towards the college. 
Education was provided for every age ; in 1665 every town 
had a free school, and every considerable town a grammar 
school ; besides which, there were town meetings for general 
discussions, which every freeman was expected to attend. In 
Hartford, Connecticut, those who failed to be present, unless 
excused, were fined. Yale College was founded in Connecti- 
cut, in 1700, being first estabhshed at Saybrook, and the 
library afterwards removed to New Haven. 

10. New York, Delaware, and Pennsylvania were not 
behind the other colonies in solicitude for early training. The 
countrymen of Erasmus loved books, and there were many 
schools in New York in which English was reckoned among the 
accomplishments. Princeton College had made an excellent 
start, and in 1768 had an orrery, to teach as to the movements 
of the heavenly bodies, such as no European college could then 
excel. Among the Quakers and other non-conformists at Lew- 
iston, Delaware, the first colonial school for girls had its origin ; 
and among men of the same class in Pennsylvania, in 1683, 
before Pcnn had returned to England, a commercial school 
was inaugurated, the fees being two dollars per annum. Be- 
fore the arrival of the founder of that colony the Swedes had 
places of worship, and every denomination made provision in 
its own way for preachers and meetings. Wampum, beaver- 
skins, and sometimes tobacco, served as currency for the pay- 
ment of the salary of minister or teacher ; but in no case was it 
known that the colonists omitted to provide fairly for education 
and worship. 

11. The newspaper press generally confined itself to local 
matters and news until about and after 1745. Such men as 
the Franklins and Zenger, who was tried for libel at, the 
instance of the government, were rare exceptions ; but after 
1745 revolutionary ideas began to find utterance. Samuel 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 157 

AclaDis became a journalist in Boston, 1748 ; but the printer 
having been imprisoned, the publication was suspended. The 
"Boston Gazette," which came out in 1755, plainly indicated 
the desire of the colonists to be left untrammelled by Great 
Britain. Samuel Adams and John Adams, Mayhew, Otis, 
Warren, Gushing, Dexter, Austin, Cooper, and others of that 
stamp, fought every abuse through its columns. This marked 
a new era in the vahie of the press, and the spirit thus indicated 
compelled the British government to repeal, in 17 60, the 
odious Stamp Act, which had become law in March, 1765. The 
oppressive plans of George III., and the fatal subserviency of 
his ministers, could not rest at that point, the king being re- 
solved that he would compel the colonists to pay taxes to the 
mother country ; and in 1767 the duties on tea, paper, glass, 
and on other commodities, having been imposed, the battle of 
public opinion continued with increasing vigor. The duties 
could not be collected, and in 1768 British troops were sent 
to Boston ; but notwithstanding every endeavor the duties were 
afterwards abolished by the British Parliament. Exasperation 
had become almost unbounded ; many of the newspapers sug- 
gested an appeal to arms as a means of redress against the 
oppressions of governors and troops, and the years 1773-4 
were signalized by momentous events. The Tea Riot in Bos- 
ton took place in the year first named, and the latter year saw 
assembled in Philadelphia, on the 5th of September, the first 
"Continental Congress." The Boston Port Bill was the imme- 
diate cause of that Congress, the declaration of rights its first 
outcome, and proximately the independence of the nation is 
due to those events. 

12. Growing exasperation on both sides left but little hope 
that there would be a peaceful end of colonial difiiculties after 
the Declaration of Rights had been adopted, although there 
were many parliamentary precedents for such action on the part 
of English subjects ; but, unfortunately, George III. was more 
nearly absolute than any king had ever been in England since 
the beginning of the reign of Henry VIIL, and his hatred of 
America already verged upon insanity. 

13. Oppressive enactments crippled every branch of trade, 
in the hope that the depletion of the colonies would enrich the 
mercantile, manufacturing, and shipping interests of the mother 
country. The navigation laws were not stringent enough to 
secure the desired ends, and there were additional restrictions 
which were gradually narrowing the industries of the colonists 



158 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

to a point at which they must have become agriculturists only, 
without permission to sell their products anywhere, except in 
England, taking therefor such wares as manufacturers in that 
country would send, at any prices they thought fit. The yoke 
was unbearable. The small beginnings of that iron industry, 
on which modern nations must base their civilization, were 
common nuisances in that country in the sight of English law- 
makers, and all manufactures were prohibited. Edmund 
Burke and the great William Pitt, now become Earl of Chat- 
ham, manfully upheld the cause of the colonists, one in the 
House of Commons and the other in the House of Lords ; but 
nothing availed as against the will of the king. 

14. The Stamp Act had been repealed, but not before it had 
worked a terrible state of feeling among the colonists. News- 
papers, documents to have force in law, and printed pamphlets, 
as well as other matters which it would be tedious to particu- 
larize, had to bear a government stamp before publication; and 
many newspapers just struggling to live were compelled to 
suspend while the act remained in force. The colonists met 
the attack with a peculiar energy. When it became knowp. 
that a man had accepted office as the British Stamp Agent, he 
was visited by a delegation in many instances, and so completely 
overawed that he forthwith had to resign his office. Houses 
were attacked, supporters of the exaction were burned in effigy, 
and stamps were destroyed whenever a capture was made. 
Associations were formed, pledged to wear np clothes but such 
as could be produced in the colonies, nor to consume any article 
of English manufacture. " Sons of Liberty'' were enrolled in 
all the colonies, and in some the organization was very powerful. 
The aspect of the people, no less than the eloquence of their 
leaders, gave evidence that the system would not be endured ; 
but when the Parliament, much to the disgust of the king, 
receded from their enactment, they yet affirmed their right to 
tax the unrepresented colonies. 

15. Boston had earned already a leading place among the 
leaders, and, in consequence, when the British Government 
proceeded to the next act of taxation, a Board of Trade to sit 
in Boston was nominated, having authority above all colonial 
assemblies. The tolling bells, days of mourning, minute-guns, 
suspended business, and other signs of determination, which, 
by moral force mainly, had rendered the Stamp Act inoperative, 
were now to be treated with disdain, and troops were sent to 
enforce the laws. The Mutiny Act would have compelled the 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



159 



colonists to give quarters and food to the soldiery ; but, one 
after another, the colonies, by their representative assemblies, 
refused obedience. New York led the van in such vindication 
of the rights of the people, and the Assembly was immediately 
disfranchised. Massachusetts backed up New York, by sending 
an appeal to the other colonics, inviting union, and nearly all 
the colonies asserted that taxation without representation meant 
tji-anny. Parliament in vain called upon the people to abandon 
the position, from which no show of right could dislodge 
them. 

16. General Gage, the last Governor of Massachusetts ap- 
pointed by George III., had, previous to 1774, visited Boston, 
being chosen by the government to enforce the odious pro- 
visions of the Mutiny Act. The struggle seemed to be as of . 
Boston against all England, and Samuel Adams was Boston. 
General Gage came with his troops, marching to martial music, 
with colors Hying, through Boston streets, one Sunday morning. 
Demanding quarters, and being refused, he took possession of 
Boston State House. Boston Common was made into a military 
camp, cannon were planted to command the town, and every- 
thing indicated a state of war. 
Quarrels were common between the 
younger citizens and the soldiery, 
and, during one of these encounters 
with the City Guard, two young 
men were badly wounded and three 
killed. This event, known as the 
Boston massacre, was the signal for 
a general rallying of the colonists 
of JSIassachusetts, and it was thought 
best that the soldiery should retreat 
to Castle William until the effer- 
vescence subsided. The soldiers 
engaged in the mcUe were tried for 
murder ; but John Adams and Josiah Quincy defended them, 
and all save two were acquitted, — the two being convicted 
of manslaughter only. 

17. Faneuil Hall was crowded during the eveninof of 
December 16, 1773, by men who were determined that the 
obnoxious tea duty should never be collected in America. 
There were three ships in the harbor laden with tea, and the 
agents were willing to send it back to England ; but the 
British authorities refused to grant permission for the departure 




XAKEUIL HALL. 



160 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

of the vessels. All tlio duties, except that on tea, had becu 
abandoned ; but that impost was insisted upon, to affirm a right. 
English traders were now so anxious for peace that they reduced 
the price of the commodit}^ so that the tea delivered in 
Boston, inclusive of duty, would cost less than it had ever 
cost the people before ; but it was a question of principle, not 
of price. From other ports the tea was only returned ; and 
the same course was to have been pursued at Boston, but for 
the stubborn refusal of the officials to grant clearances for the 
ships. The conclusion was only made known that night, and 
the Boston Tea Party, disguised as Indians, boarded the ships, 
emptying three hundred and forty-two chests of tea into the 
harbor. There was no attempt to conceal the fact that the 
Indian costume was only a disguise, as one of the party con- 
versed with Admiral JNIontague on the subject, immediately after 
the operation had been eflected, and before his war-paint had 
been removed. 



CHAPTER XIII. 

THE WAE FOR INDEPENDENCE, 177i TO 1777. 

EVENTS OF THE REVOLUTION — INCIDENTS OF THE WAR WHICH LOST THE 
COLONIES TO ENGLAND. 

1. The new Governor of INIassachusctts came to Boston, 
May 17, 1774, as the English government thought General 
Gage precisely the man to carry out their loyal scheme of ven- 
geance against the head-quarters of the rebellion. Boston port 
had been shut against all commerce by act of Parliament, and 
much distress w^as being experienced. Virginia, by its Assem- 
bly, denounced this act of oppression, and was immediately 
dismissed by the royalist governor. The popular side in the 
struggle took the name of Whig, and the opposition set were 
Tories. Minute-men were enrolled, ready to assemble and 
fight for the cause at one minute's warning. The governor, 
alarmed, commenced the fortification of Boston Keck, and it 
became more evident every day that there would be a war and 
a Continental union. 

2. Under such auspices the first Continental Congress as- 
sembled in the City of Brotherly Love, and every colony was 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 161 

represented except Georgia, the youngest of the thirteen. In- 
dependence, in the Ijroadcr sense, was yet only the dream of a 
few. The Congress denounced the presence of a standing army ; 
sustained Massachusetts in its resistance ; disclaimed the rt^ccnt 
acts of the English government, and resolved to hold no inter- 
course with the mother country. The rights of the colonists 
Avere to be upheld, but the men forming the Congress believed 
that so much could be efl'ectcd without breakino'tho connection. 
3. The Governor of Massachusetts, having ascertained that 
there were military stores at Concord, belonging to the people, 
concluded that he would procure them for his own use, or de- 
stroy them, and an expedition of eight hundred men, under 
Colonel Smith, was detailed April 19, 1775, for that purpose. 
The people started off messengers to rouse the minute-men, and 
a signal lanterif on the steeple of North Church called assist- 
ance from considerable distances. Lexington was one of the 
rallying points of the colonial forces, and when the Britishers 
arrived there they found almost a company of minute-men as- 
sembled on the village green. Major Pitcairn, second in com- 
mand of the roj'alists, ordered the people to disperse, and, upon 
their declining to do so, a battle ensued, in which seven of the 
Americans were killed. The troops pushed on to Concord, and 
the stores were hastily destroyed, as it had now become evident 
that the retreat to Boston must l)e conducted through a country 
swarming with minute-men, impatient to avenge the blood spilt 
at Lexington. Every point that could give shelter to a marks- 
man, trees, rocks, buildings, fences, inequalities of surface, 
were all turned to good purpose by the colonial trooj)s, and 
three hundred loyal troops fell before the remainder were res- 
cued by reinforcements from Boston. The Avar had commenced, 
and as the news, carried by SAvift messengers, coursed through 
the land, men left their Avork in the tields untinished to hurry 
to the scene of conflict. Israel Putnam, a brave man, Avas one 
of the earliest recruits, and he Avas in Boston almost as soon 
as the retreating regulars, leaving his cattle yoked in the 
Held. There Avas no longer a vestige of authority in the 
hands of British governors from Massachusetts to Georgia, 
other than that their troops could compel obedience. TAventy 
thousand men Avorked at the entrenchments that were to 
shut up General Gage and his forces in Boston. Congresses 
Averc formed instanter in all the colonies, to consider the situ- 
ation, and committees Avere duly authorized to call out the 
troops should emergencies arise. Governor Gage had com- 



1G2 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



menced a Av;ir which he did not live to sec fought out to its 
uuhappy result. 

4. The col- 
onists were de- 
termined to see 
the matter to 
an end, or per- 
ish in the 
attempt, and 
Colonel Pres- 
cott was cho- 
sen to com- 
mand in the 
first regular 
engagement. 
The President 
of Harvard 
prayed at the 
head of the 
troops before 
they started 
from Cam- 
bridge to for- 
tify Bunker 

Hill, and they worked through the bright moonlight until 
morning, when their earthworks were completed. They had 
preferred Breed's Hill for their fortification, as they found 
it more commanding ; and so silent had been their laljors, 
although within hail of the sentinels m Boston, that the 
British troops knew nothing of their proceedings nntil they 
saw the redoubt fully constructed, June 17, 1775. Sir 
William Howe commanded an attack, and three thousand men 
ascended tlie hill to within ten rods of the redoubt without being 
molested. The colonel had given orders that the defenders 
should not fire until they could see the whites of their oppo- 
nents' eyes, and they Avere soldierly enough to obey his orders. 
At the proper moment the word " Fire ! " was heard, and con- 
sentaneously every rifle vomited forth its messenger of death. 
The redcoats, immovable as a wall one second before, had fallen 
in their ranks, or were in rapid retreat when the smoke lifted. 
They had anticipated nothing so terril)le as that act of slaughter. 
The village of Charlestown, set on fire by Governor Gage, was 
the rallying point of the regulars, and, having reformed there, 




puTNAJi su."ij:omed to war. 



ENGLx^ND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 163 

the troops once more breasted the hill. The deadly volley met 
them as before, and they were compelled a second time to re- 
th*e ; this time so shattered that they could not renew the attack 
without reinforcements. Had the colonists possessed a suffi- 
ciency of ammunition the whole force under Howe's command 
Avould have been insufficient to dispossess them ; but their weak- 
ness consisted in that lacking. When the third assault was 
made there was only powder and l)all sufficient for one volley, 
but that was delivered with emphasis and terrible effect, Ihe 
British troops paused for a moment, and then, finding no repe- 
tition of the sanguinary salute, charged over the earthworks at 
the point of the bayonet, and the colonists, having no weapons 
but their clu])bed muskets, were compelled reluctantly to retire 
from the scene on which they had already immortalized the 
name American. Twice the British had come in contact with 
the continentals, whom they professed to despite, and on each 
occasion they had won success. Before this engagement, and 
after the battle of Lexington, the Provincial Congress of jMassa- 
chusetts had, in May, 1775, declared General Gage unworthy 
of obedience, and he had responded, in June, by a proclamation 
ofiering pardon to all rebels, except Samuel Adams and John 
Hancock. The same document estal)Jished martial law. Four 
months after the battle of Bunker Hill General Gage was re- 
lieved of his office by Sir AVilliam Howe, and returned to Eng- 
land, Vv'herc he died within two years. 

5. Within one month of the Battle of Lexington the fortress 
of Ticondcroga, so often assaulted in vain by regulars and 
volunteers comlfined, was surprised and captured by a body of 
volunteers, under Colonel Ethan Allen and General Benedict 
Arnold. The commander was in bed wdien Allen demanded 
his surrender, and there was nothing possible in the way of re- 
sistance. The ofiicer demanded in whose name the force of 
Green Mountain bo3's had made the demand, and Colonel Allen 
replied : " In the name of the Great Jehovah and the Continental 
Congress ! " Crown Point Avas captured soon afterwards, and 
the continental forces were thus made masters of large cannon, 
small arms, and ammunition. There was not one life lost in 
the expedition. 

6. The second Continental Congress assembled at Phila- 
delphia on the day of the capture of Ticondcroga, ]May 10, 
1775, and it was concluded that t\venty thousand men should be 
raised for the war, to serve under the orders of Gen. Washington, 
commander-in-chief. A petition to the king waj adopted at 



164 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

the same time, but George III. refused to receive the docu- 
ment. The commander-in-chief proceeded to the camp before 
Boston, and there found about fourteen tliousand men, ill clad 
and worse armed, many of them unfit for the service which 
they had taken up on the impulse of the moment, and of 
which they were already heartily sick. Very few knew any 
thing about drill or discipline, and there were only nine car- 
tridges per man in the magazine with which the war of inde- 
pendence was to be fought. Gen. Washington did all that 
could be done under the circumstances, and Gen. Gage re- 
mained enclosed in Boston. 

7. As already described, in the autumn of 1775 Gen. 
Montgomery led a force by the way of Lake Cham})lain, now 
open to the operations of the colonists, took St. Johns and 
Montreal, appearing before Quebec in December, where he 
was joined by a band of men, almost famished, led by Gen. 
Arnold. The new-comers had ascended the Kennebec, and 
made a road through the wilderness to the point of attack. 
The two forces joined were less than one thousand cHec- 
fives ; but with this small body a siege was maintained for 
three weeks, until an assault was thought practicable, and, in a 
blinding storm of snow, the forlorn hope advanced by two 
divisions, one led by Gen. Montgomery, the other by Benedict 
Arnold. Fortunately for the English, the chief in command fell 
mortally wounded ; and, yet more fortunately for the Americans, 
Arnold fell wounded, but not mortally. Gen. Morgan, who 
succeeded Arnold in the command, was hemmed in on all 
sides and compelled to surrender ; and the little armj^ after 
maintaining a l)lockade of the city until spring, retreated on 
the approach of the British troops to reinforce the garrison. 

8. Gen. Washington steadily pursued his i)urpose all 
through the v/inter of 1775-76, to bring his army into form 
and to compel the British to evacuate Boston. Dorchester 
Heights were fortified during the night of March 17, 177(5, and 
in the morning the troops in the city saw an opportunity to 
repeat the experience of Breed's Hill ; but a storm prevented 
action at once, and every hour of delay made the earthworks 
more complete. Gen. IIonvc saw the necessity for an instant 
retirement with his army and fleet before worse happened, and 
many of the Tories accompanied him. Admiral Parker, with 
a British fleet of nine sail and two hundred and seventy 
guns, appeared off Charleston harbor, June 28, 1776, 
and, finding a fort of palmetto .logs on Sullivan's Island, 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 165 

with earthworks carrying twenty-six guns, the admiral bom- 
barded the fortihcation. Col. William Moultrie, who was 
ill command of the fort, used his forces so well that, 
although Gen. Clinton, with a consideralde body of troops, 
cooperated Avith the mival contingent and tried an attack in the 
rear, the assaikmts were beaten off with consideral)le loss. 
This exploit was commemorated in the best possible way by 
naming the position Fort ^loultrie, and strengthening the 
works. The report of this victory was well received all over 
the colonies, and it was opportune. 

9. While Boston was being abandoned by the British 
troops, and in the South the naval arm of Great Britain was 
sustaining a defeat. Congress had been deeply pondering the 
problem which demanded solution ; and on the od of July, 
177G, by a majority of one colony, a resolution, introduced by 
Richard Ilcnry Lee, of Virginia, was carried, afSrming that : 
"The United Colonies are, and ought to be, free and indepen- 
dent States." Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Benjamin 
Franklin, lioger Sherman, and Rol)ert B. Livingston, Vv^ere 
appointed to draw up " The Declaration of Independence,'' 
and at two in the morning of the eventful Fourth of July the 
charter of the liberties of a nation of freemen was ratified by 
Congress, the report of the committee being adopted. The 
people of Philadelphia had been intensely anxious all the day 
as to the outcome of the debate, and when the news was at 
length promulgated, the bell in the steeple of the old State 
House joyfully rang out the tidings, which the people reechoed 
in all directions. The old bell is now preserved as a curiosity, 
bearing the prophetic motto ; " Proclaim liberty throughout all 
the land, to all the people thereof." 

10. Signing the "Declaration of Independence" was an act 
which left for the men who had taken that step no retreat. 
They must conquer the liberty towards which they aspired, or 
sink under the punishment awarded to rebels by a king such 
as George III. was known to be. The men who had already 
drawn the sword could well afibrd to throw away the scabbard ; 
and, as the event proved, the liberties of the people Avere in 
able bands. Gen. Washington, with seven thousand men fit for 
service, turned his attention toward New York as soon as Boston 
had been freed ; and he was correct in his anticipations that the 
British commander-in-chief would make a descent in that quar- 
ter. Gen. Howe proceeded from Boston to Halifax, where he 
refitted, and then sailed for New York. His brother, Admiral 



166 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

Lord Howe, joined him there with a lleet and reinforcements, 
which, when joined to the troops commanded by Gen. Sir Harry 
Clinton, gave an army of thirty thousand men. The government 
had sent by the admiral powers to treat with the Americans, but 
they were to be dealt with as revolted colonists, not as a free 
and'^ independent people. An olHcer was sent to the American 
camp with a letter addressed to George Washington, Es(iuire ; 
but the "Commander-in-Chief of the Armies of the United 
States " refused to receive a conununication which failed to rec- 
ognize his office and rank, and the messenger, after many 
attempts to overcome the difficulty, carried back the letter. 

11. The first defeat sustained by the American troops 
occurred on Long Island, where Gen. Putman, with nine thou- 
sand men, held a fort and defences on the hills south of Brook- 
lyn. The enemy advanced in three divisions, one of which, un- 
observed, turned the Hank of the defenders and assaik'd them in 
the rear. The American troops, although outnumbered, were 
fighting bravely, wdien the sound of tiring from the third division 
of t he attacking force told the colonists that they were surrounded . 
Tlie carnage was territic, as, of the five thousand men engaged, 
two thousand were slain or taken prisoners, to endure a fate 
almost worse than death. The fort at Brooklyn was not 
attacked immediately, as the fleet was required to cooperate in 
the assault, and a dehiy of two days gave the troops an oppor- 
tunity to retreat. During the night of the escape a negro ser- 
vant, sent by a Tory to inform the British of the movement, 
was captured by Hessian troops, — hired from Hesse Cassel for 
the Avar, — and they, unable to comprehend the message, de- 
tained him until the morning, so that Putnam withdrew his 
troops without additional loss. 

12. Strategic movements were now the order of the day, as 
the British, well furnished with all the munitions of war, and 
much more numerous than the colonial troops, could not l)e 
assailed with safety. Gen. Washington had taken up a strong 
position on Harlem Heights, and the British commander-in- 
chief did not dare an attack ; but the movements of the enemy 
obliged Washington to withdraw to ^\'hite Plains, where part of 
his army was defeated ; with the remainder he occupied a 
strong camp at North Castle, and Howe prudently retired to 
New York. Fort Washington, which stood where 181st and 
186th streets now are, was taken by the Hessians, Nov. 16, 
1776, after a very obstinate defence, with two thousand six 
hundred prisoners. The American army, small from the lirst, 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 167 

was now hardly three thousand strong, and it was necessary to 
retreat into New Jersey to resist a march on Phihidelphia. 
Lord ( 'ornwallis, with six thousand troops in good condition, 
followed the shoeless ranks of the Army of Independence for 
three weeivs, until Washington crossed the Delaware into 
Pennsylvania. Gen. Lee, who was slowly following the com- 
mander-in-chief, was taken piisoner by the British during this 
retreat. The boats on the Delaware had been secured by the 
colonists, and Gen. Howe concluded that he would cross the 
river on the ice as soon as practicable, to follow up his suc- 
cesses l)y taking Philadelphia. The villages along the river 
were occupied by his troops, and he waited for his opportunity. 
This was the darkest moment in the war for the Americans. 
The troops were outnumbered, disheartened, and ill-supported, 
and the strong places were falling, or had fallen, into the hands 
of the British ; but the sun was still shining behind the 
clouds. 

13. Christmas night, 1770, ^vas made memorable by an event 
which reanimated the soul of the rebellion throughout the 
United States. There was a terrible storm, — so severe that men 
were frozen to death that night, — when Washington recrossed 
the Delaware, with two thousand four hundred men, and at- 
tacked the Hessian ti'oops in Trenton, killing their leader and 
capturing one thousand "prisoners, with a loss of only four of 
his own men. The surprise was perfect, and when Washington 
returned to his camp after that victory the prospects of the 
colonial army had improved wonderfully. Recruits came in 
daily ; men whose term of service had expired, remained; and 
Lord Cornwallis, who ^vas to have carried to England the news 
of the almost complete extinction of the American army, was 
recalled by his commander-in-chief to enter upon a winter's 
campaign. 

1-1. Washington recrossed the river, Jan. 3, 1777, at the 
same point, and established himself at Trenton to await the 
coming of Cornwallis. The royalist forces came up about sun- 
set and attacked the colonial army; but they were repulsed with 
some loss, and the British general resolved to wait until morn- 
mg. lie had no cause for hurrying ; there was no escape for 
the troops under Washington ; they should all be taken in the 
morning, as his force was enormously superior, and they were 
shut in by his lines and the impassal)le river. Washington was 
no sluggard, and neither his troops nor himself could sleep that 
night. The watch-fires burned l)rightly along the whole line, 



168 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



and behind that wall of flame the colonial army moved noise- 
lessly away with forty cannon, over the newly frozen country 
roads, which a few hours afterwards were impassable. The 
British troops at Princeton were entirely unprepared for an 
attack, when the Americans fell upon them and routed the force, 
capturing three hundred prisoners, with whom the general 
marched to jMorristown Heights without pausing. Lord Corn- 
wallis arrived at Princeton too late to redeem the fortune of 
war, and his foes were beyond his power. The praise of AVash- 
ington was on every American lip, and all that winter he 
harassed the British, until New Jersey was all but rescued 
from their arms. 

15. The American army was so small and ill provided that 
it was impossible for Gen. Washington to carry out any large 
scheme of operations. He coukl only wait upon fortune, and 
reserve such force as he possessed for the most promising 
enterprises. The British general wanted a decisive battle, 
but the American commander could not be entrapped ; and 

after waiting until September, 1777, 
Gen. Howe despatched a force of 
eighteen thousand men to the Chesa- 
peake in his brother's fleet, to assail 
Philadelphia from that direction. 
There was now no option ; a general 
engao-ement must be risked, and the 
colonial troops must be jDosted, as 
well as circumstances will permit, 
at Bhadd's Ford, on the Brandy- 
wino Creek, thirty miles south-west 
t)f the city. The army was only 
eleven thousand strong, and the 
struggle was unsuccessful for the 
British. The British Avon the day, 
September 11, 1777, and took pos- 
session of Philadelphia, estal)lishing Avinter-quarters at German- 
town. The Marquis De La Fajette and the Count Pulaski 
won golden opinions l)y their gallant Ijchavior during the 
battle of Brandywine Creek. 

IG. Just after the enemy had settled down in winter- 
quarters, Washington made an attack on their cantonments at 
sunrise, Oct. 4, 1777, his troops having marched all night to 
carry out the design. The assault at flrst was successful, but 
eventually the colonial soldiers were compelled to retreat 




MARQUIS DE LA FAYETTE. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



169 



before a superior force. A dense fog, wliicli prevailed mean- 
while, prevented such cooperation as had been planned by 
"VYashington. The forts on the Delaware were now bomljardcd 
by the British general, and the American troops compoUed to 
retreat, after which the armies went into winter-quarters : IIowc 
and his men in Germantown and Philadelphia ; Washington 
and his troops at Valley Forge. 

17. There was better news for the Americans coming in 
from the north, where an army of ten thousand men, under 
Gen. Burgoyne, was to have demolished the rebellion. The 
general took command in Canada in the summer of 1777, and 
in June commenced his march, attended by about two thousand 
Indian allies. His army was exceedingly well appointed, and 
much was expected from his abilities. The forts at Crown 
Point, Ticondcroga, and Edw ard, were captured immediately, 
and the supplies at Whitehall were taken ; the small l)ody of 
men under Gen. Schuyler being utterly disproportioned to the 
force under Burgoyne. The roads were obstructed, bridges 

destroyed, and such work 
as untiring valor found 
possible was accom- 
plished ; still the enemy 
advanced, and the out- 
rages of the Indians, more 
than even the loss of the 
forts, roused the Amer- 
ican people to participate 
in the war. From all the 
surrounding states mili- 
tia-men were arriving, 
and daring officers, such 
as Lincoln, ]Morgan, and 
Arnold, Avere sent to 
watch the advance. 
Schuyler is sympathized 
with l)c cause he was 
superseded by General 
Gates just at the moment 
when his schemes ap- 
proached fruition : but he was too bitter towards the English 
to allow that circumstance to dampen his ardor. The army, 
speedily formed, was drilled as rapidly, and a position on Bemis 
Heights was fortified under the direction of the brave Thaddeus 




THE ALARM AT FORT STANTVIX. 



170 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

Kosciuf^ko, who was to light for liberty ou both sides of the 
AtUiiitie. 

18. Burgoync had not found affairs exactly to his mind, 
although he had found no army ready to attack him. Col. St. 
Leger was to have taken Fort Stanwix, and, after ravishing 
the ^Mohawk Yalley, rejoin the general at Albany. Benedict 
Arnold, with an inferior force, was des}>atched by Schu3der to 
create a diversion in favor of the fort and the vtilley, and he 
contrived to till the British troops with the belief that a 
large American army was close at hand ; so that by a ruse he 
came into possession of their cannon and camp equipments, 
and defeated their expedition without striking one bloAv. 
Another party was detailed to seize the American supplies of 
Bennington, Vt. ; but General Stark and a body of militiamen 
defeated the foragers, taking nearly six hundred prisoners. 



CHAPTER XIV. 

THE WAU FOR INDEPENDENCE, 1777 TO 1783. 

EVENTS OF THE EEVOLUTION CLOSING SCENES OF THE AVAR FOR 

INDEPENDENCE. 

1. BuRGOYNE suffered for the want of reinforcements and 
supplies, and his troops were becoming dcmoi-alized, so that it 
became necessary to make some vigorous movement ; hence he 
attacked Gen. Gates' strong position on Bemis Heights, Sep- 
tember 19, 1777. The battle raged all the day long; but it 
was not a decisive victory for the Americans, and at night both 
armies retired to their respective camps, and no other en- 
gagement has to be recorded until October 7th. The camp of 
the British troops had been kept in continual alarm, but no 
attack in force had been attempted. Gates waited for some 
false move on the part of Burgoync, and the British general 
had come to the point where he must win a victory, surrender 
at discretion, or starve. He preferred fighting, and a last 
desperate effort was made. It is claimed that the success of 
the American arms on the second day's work at Stillwater, 
sometimes known as the battle of Saratoga, was due to Bene- 
dict Arnold, Avho was undoubtedly brave ; but in any case the 
victory this time w^as unquestioned. There was a vigorous 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



171 



charge on the British line of attack, and the soldiers svcyg 
driven hack to their camp, Avlicrc the Hessians lied in con- 
fusion, after firing only one volley. 

2. The defeated general fell hack to Saratoga, and there 
delil^erated upon the chances of war. Provisions were scarce, 
and dangers hemmed him in on every side ; nor was there any 
hope of reinforcements. The cannon on Bemis Heights com- 
manded tlie camp, and a surrender Avas the only course that 
could be suoo'ested hy a council of war. The Indian allies, 
once so wily, had nothing to suggest, and the Tories had 
already taken their departnre ; so the general made the best 
capitulation possible nnder the circumstances, surrendering six 
thousand men, with all the material for an army of twice that 
numl)er, to the comparatively raw levies at Saratoga ; hence 
the news from the north compensated the Union for the misfor- 
tmies that had befallen Philadelphia. 

3. There is an adage that the darkest hour is that l)efore 
the dawn. Winter in \'alley Forge was very dark indeed. 
Continental currency had so depreciated that it was no longer 
current. Clothing, food, weapons, even phj^sical strength 
seemed to have been exhausted, and death came as a relief to 
brave men who had vowed themselves to the cause of freedom. 
The endurance manifested by Washington and his brave follow- 
ers in that fearful season of trial 
was more truly heroic than to 
win mnnmibered battles with the 
advantages of wealth and complete 
equipment. The men Avho struggled 
through the winter of 1777-8, under 
Gen. Washington, were sustained by 
the courageous example of their 
leader. Benjamin Franklin, whose 
eftbrts in En<>land not averting the 
necessity for war, had long since 
been sent to the court of France, 
where he speedily became very popu- 
lar, and the dreary Avintcr Mas en- 
livened as it drew towards its close 
by news that France had acknowl- 
edged the independence of the United States, and would 
despatch a tleet to assist in vindicating the rights of the 
country. 

4. Gen. Washington was surrounded by men who would 




BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. 



172 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

die for him, but there were among his officers not a few who, 
in their wrong-headed obstinacy, imperilled his best-laid 
schemes. Gen. Lee was a man of that condition. After the 
conclusion of the campaign of 1777 Gen. Howe returned to 
England, and Clinton assumed the command. That general, 
having learned that the French fleet, under D'Estaing, was 
approaching, resolved upon concentrating his forces, and 
New York was to be his centre. Washington followed him 
across ISew Jersey, and the two forces met at ]\Ionmouth, 
where, just at the moment when victory was imminent, Gen. 
Lee connnanded a retreat. Fortunately, for the Americans the 
commander-in-chief was on the ground, and he changed the 
fortune of the battle by his personal intrepidity. The engage- 
ment lasted all the day, and, in the darkness of the night. Gen. 
Sir Harry Clinton made a hasty retreat to New York. Count 
D'Estaing arrived with his fleet, and it was arranijed that he 
should cooperate with the army under Gen. Sullivan in an 
attack upon the British forces in Newport, Rhode Island ; but, 
just at the time when the combined operation was to have 
been carried out, Howe, with the British fleet, arrived off 
the harbor, and the French commander went out to meet 
him. The storm in which both fleets were involved damaged 
the ships so badly that both admirals put back for repairs, and 
there was no farther aid from France during the campaign of 
1778 ; but the presence of D'Estaing prevented Howe entering 
the Bay of Narragansett just when he might have cooperated 
with the forces under Gen. Clinton. 

5. The scalping-knife and the tomahawk seem more terrible 
than at any other time when civilized races summon their aid. 
The massacre of Wyoming illustrates the sickening barbarities 
which are, under such circumstances, likely to give a new 
horror to war. The men who were capable of taking part in 
the war were mostly engaged in the field, when Butler, com- 
manding a band of British and Indians, entered the Valley of 
Wyoming. There was a fort in which the women and children 
found refuge, and the old men and youths bravely fought the 
invaders ; but they were outnumbered and defeated, and every 
torture that malignity could devise was expended upon them 
by the Indians before they were put to death. The fort was 
surrendered upon conditions that were shamelessly disregarded, 
and the whole valley was desolated, the survivors fl3'ing for 
their lives through the wilderness. 

6. Georgia, the youngest of the States, Avas made the scene 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 173 

of British operations in the latter part of 1778. Savannah 
and Augusta fell immediately, and the whole State was over- 
run. Clinton seemed to have despaired of success in the more 
populous States, and therefore his attentions were directed 
against a comparatively defenceless section of the Union. 
Charleston, S.C., w^as the next point of attack; but the siege 
under Prevost was precipitately raised on the approach of an 
American force under Gen. Lincoln, and Prevost returned to 
Savannah. The recapture of Savannah was gallantly attempted, 
in Sept. ,1779, by Lincoln, in combination Avith the fleet under the 
French Admiral, but a thousand lives were lost in an attack, 
after a severe bombardment of the city, and the Count D'Estaing 
then refused farther assistance. The Americans blamed him 
very severely for his conduct. The brave Pole, Pulaski, found 
a grave here, and his services with the legion bearing his name 
were, at a later date, commemorated by a monument in Sa- 
vannah. 

7. Northern operations imder Clinton were little other than 
acts of spoliation, where no defence was possible and where 
no military advantage followed his course of action. Norwalk, 
Fairfield, and New Haven, Conn., Avere plundered and set on 
fire, and the work of destruction was made as complete as 
possible. AYherever a few men could be gathered to make a 
show of opposition, the predatory bands were restrained. Gen. 
Putnam rendered good service to the American cause, and dis- 
tinguished himself at Horse Neck, operating against Tryon this 
summer. Stony Point was captured by Gen. Wayne, with 
a force of eight hundred men, w^ith the aid of a negro who was 
in the habit of visiting the fort and knew the countersign. The 
general led the attacking party by a route Avell known to him, 
and, advancing alone to the sentinel, gave the word, after 
w^hich he remained conversing with the soldier until he could 
be surprised and prevented from giving an alarm. From that 
point the troops passed over the causew^ay and reached the hill 
undiscovered. About midnight the assault was made , with every 
precaution to secure silence, but the attacking party was fired 
upon hy the first picket of the fort, and Wayne was one of the 
first wounded ; but at his own request he was carried at the 
head of his column, and the capture was speedily effected. The 
defenders lost six hundred men in killed, wounded, and pris- 
oners, besides the fort and its contents. Chastising the Tories 
and their allies, the red men, was the task allotted to Gen. 
Sullivan, in the Genesee country, and the Wyoming massacre 



174 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

"was not forgotten. There was a battle near Elmira, N.Y.', and 
the enemy received a crushing defeat, after which the American 
force hiid waste the Indian villages. 

8. John Paul Jones, Avhose real name was John Paul, ren- 
dered clfectual service to the cause of the Union on the sea. 
The naval service was necessarily small, but it consisted of able 
and daring men, in small vessels, generally fitted out as letters of 
marque and privateers, and within the lirst three years of the 
war live hundred British vessels had been taken along the coast. 
The naval department had no more active und enterprising 
man than Paul Jones, who ravaged the coasts of Great Britain. 
After several noteworthy exploits, Jones procured a French 
vessel, which he named "La Bon Homme Eichard," in honor 
of Benjamin Franklin's genius, and with that vessel captured the 
"Serapis," an English frigate, in every way a better ship than 
his own, and carrying heavier guns. Jones' ship was old 
and rotten before the French gave her to him ; but she was 
made serviceable until the " Serapis" had been taken in a des- 
perate hand-to-hand encounter, and from that time the British 
vessel was sailed by Paul Jones, under the American tlag, a 
terror to English commerce. The pride of our mother country 
was more touched by such exploits than by the surrender of an 
army. 

9. Charleston, S. C, was again attacked in 1780, and this 
time an overwhelming force by land and sea compelled a sur- 
render, after a bombardment and siege of forty days' duration. 
Gen. Lincoln managed the defence admirably. Cornwallis sent 
predat(n'y parties, under Tarleton, and other such leaders, to 
distress the colonists in all directions ; and terrible brutalities 
were perpetrated. Gen. Gates took command of the southern 
army ; but his conduct in this campaign favors the idea that his 
previous success was not due to his own energy. Gates 
planned a night attack on Cornwallis, near Camden, and the 
British, who had entertained a similar project for the same 
time, were met in the woods, marching to surprise the Amer- 
ican camp. After skirmishing in the dark for a time, both 
forces waited for day, and the advantage of the encounter was 
entirely on the side of the British. Baron de Kalb, major- 
general of the force, and second in command, fell mortally 
wounded on the held, and his comrades were overpowered light- 
ing bravely. The militia fled, and Gates wa-s nowhere during 
the engagement. The L^nion forces in the South were entirely 
broken up. 



ENGLAND, AND TPIE UNITED STATES. 175 

10. The defence of the South became little other than a 
guerilla Avarfare. Marion, Sumpter, Lee, and Pickens rallied 
the most daring men in the Carolinas, — North and South, — 
and British detachments were cut off in all directions. Some 
garrisons were captured, and a system of reprisals, rendered 
necessary by the conduct of Tarleton and the British, made the 
country very warm during the continuance of British rule. Some 
of the Americans were so poorly armed that they depended 
largely upon procuring the Aveapons and ammunition of their 
enemies. Such tactics prevailed at Hanging Eock, August G, 
and at King's JMountain, October 7, in both of which engage- 
ments the Americaus were victorious. 

11. Unlimited inflation had been the policy of Congress in 
all monetary concerns from the first, and two hundred million 
dollars issued by authority could be bought for fifty million dol- 
lars specie. Currency would hardly buy necessary articles, and 
the soldiers were unable to procure boots with their pay. The 
British helped the financial muddle by circulating counterfeit 
notes, and, in some districts, the troops were at the jioint of 
famine. Robert ^lorris, of Philadelphia, sent three million ra- 
tions to the army, and relief associations were formed, but the 
distress was so imminent that Pennsylvania troops, to the 
number of one thousand six hundred, left the camp at ]\Iorris- 
town" to secure redress by force in Philadelphia. Sir Henry 
Clinton, whose spies were everywhere, improved the occasion 
by oftering bribes to the revolting Union soldiers as a premium 
for desertion, and numbers of these creatures were handed over 
to the authorities by the men whose poverty they hoped to cor- 
rupt. A congressional committee speedily pacified the clamor 
by showing that they were doing all in their power to carry 
the war to a successful conclusion. 

12. While the soldiery Avere suflcring heroically, and in the 
main without complaining, Ben.edict Arnold meditated an act 
of treason unsurpiissed in the Avorld's history. Ilis bravery had 
long been his only recommendation to employment, and he 
never suffered Avant, if it was possiljle to rob the men suftering 
under him, or anybody else. Charges of a grave nature were 
proved against him, and it became necessary that he should be 
publicly rebuked by the commander in chief. Gen. Wash- 
ington perforuicd his duty as gently as circumstances Avould 
permit, in consideration of Arnolds services ; but the disgrace 
Avas keenly felt l)y the unprincipled man, and he sought an 
opportunity to revenge himself upon his country. Having, by 



17G HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

solicitation, procured the command of West Point, under the 
pretence that he wished to redeem his character, this position, 
the most important in the possession of the Americans, he at 
once offered, to Sir Henry Clinton, for a price, and the terms of 
the infamons compact were arranged M'ithout delay. The plan 
of surrender required an interview with an agent above the 
status of an ordinary spy, and Maj. Andre, an English officer 
much respected, passed the American lines to complete the 
details. The British sloop " Vulture " conveyed him up the 
Hudson to West Point ; but fire having been opened on the 
vessel she dropped down the river, and Andre was under the 
necessity to return overland to New York. The papers were 
concealed in his dress, and Andre reached Tarrytown on his 
return, when three men, Paulding, AVilliams, and Van Wart, 
seized him on suspicion. Knowing that one American officer 
was corrupt, Andre thought he could procure his release by 
bribes ; but his offers convinced the men that they had obtained 
a valuable prize, and he was conveyed to the nearest post. A 
safe-conduct from Arnold was looked upon as a forgery, and the 
officer in command was on the point of sending Andre to West 
Point as a prisoner ; but Providence intervened. A note from 
the officer conveyed to Arnold the intelligence that his treason 
had miscarried ; so that he had time to escape on board the 
" Vulture," at a point lower on the Hudson, and he detained the 
1)oatmen as prisoners. The price obtained by the traitor was 
about thirty-two thousand dollars, and a colonel's command in 
the English army ; but officers of standing would not associate 
with him, and he was continually insulted to the end of his life, 
although protected by the king. Andre, sympathized with by 
all classes, was necessarily hanged as a spy, and the Union ser- 
vice was justly purged of a brave and able, but most iniquitous, 
officer in the desertion of Arnold. 

13. Gen. Greene succeeded to the command wdiich had been 
demoralized by Gates, and found only about two thousand men, 
in the last stages of destitution. The battle of Cowpens was 
fought l)y a part of this force under Gen. INIorgan, who was 
attacked on the 17th of January, 1781, by Col. Tarleton. The 
militia retreated in confusion, and the Continentals made a retro- 
grade movement, to secure a strong position. Tarleton thought 
the whole force was routed, and the soldiers rushed forward to 
annihilate the colonists ; but the American troops, facing about 
at the word of , command, delivered a destructive fire at points 
blank range, and the British colonel was completely defeated, 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 177 

many prisoners being taken. Lord Cornwallis was desirous to 
retrieve this disaster ; but Morgan retreated into \ irginia, 
carrying his spoils with him, and the Catawba, just swollen by 
heavy rain, prevented an instant pursuit. 

14. General Morgan was now joined by the commander, 
and the retreat from this point was conducted by Greene. The 
weather favored the American forces. Just after the Yadkin 
had been crossed by the Americans, the river was so swollen 
that Cornwallis was forced to make a detour before passing the 
stream. The start thus obtained saved Greene's command 
from absolute demolition l)y a superior force. The patriotism 
of the South was proved by many noble deeds of self-sacritice 
during this campaign, and when at last the fords of the Dan 
were crosaed before Cornwallis could come up to dispute the 
passage, the British commander abandoned the chase. Gen. 
Greene won and deserved the unanimous thanks of Congress 
for his masterly conduct. 

15. Greene wanted a respite only for his men, and he had 
given them confidence in his and their own powers. We find 
him at Guilford Court-House, March 15, 1781, fighting against 
great odds, but now the assailant. The militia did not stand 
tire, but the continental troops held their own splendidl}^ and, 
although there was not a victorjs Cornwallis retreated to Wil- 
mington, pursued by Greene immediately afterwards. The 
force under his command being insufiicient to invest Wilming- 
ton, Greene now joined Marion, Sumpter, Pickens, and Lee in 
South Carolina, and harassed the English until Georgia, as 
well as South Carolina, were almost entirely free from the 
troops of England. The enemy was so broken by the battle 
at Eutaw Springs, September 8, that they retired upon 
Charleston, South Carolina. The commander of the enemy, 
relieved from the presence of Greene, made a raid into Vir- 
ginia, and although the British made many demonstrations, the 
regular war in the South had come to an end, although Charles- 
ton was not evacuated until the following year, 1782. 

16. Arnold, the traitor, in the eyes of Americans, was in 
Virginia, covering himself with poor glory by his endeavors to 
prove his usefulness to the British. La Fayette, with an infe- 
rior force, held him somewhat in check until Cornwallis, com- 
ing from South Carolina, assumed the command, and continued, 
with a much greater force, the same horrible system of 
butchery, plunder, and destruction. Gen. Clinton, commander- 
in-chief, recalled Cornwallis from his marauding expedition in 



178 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

the interior, directing him to keep near the coast, ready to 
cooperate in a scheme of defence, should Washington attack 
New York, and, in consequence, that officer fortified himself in 
Yorktown. The French alHes of the Americans and their own 
forces now proceeded to hem in Cornwallis at Yorktown. 
Washino:ton assumed the oftensive at New York, so that Clin- 
ton ])elieved himself in momentary clanger of an assault, 
until the commander-in-chief was drawing near his actual point 
of attack, and on the 28th of September twelve thousand men 
were before Yorktown. Batteries were opened immediately, 
and red-hot shot and shells tired the shipping in the harbor. 
The American force carried one redoubt, while the French 
troops carried another, and the finest spirit of emulation made 
every soldier equal to the work of two men. The#walls were 
soon breached, and an assault Avas imminent, when Lord Corn- 
wallis followed the example of Burgoyne, and capitulated, on 
the IDth of October, 1781. 

17. Gen. Washino-ton commanded that the sword of Corn- 
walHs should be delivered to Gen. Lincoln, who had been com- 
pelled to surrender Charleston ; and the captive army, seven 
thousand strong, marched out from the fortifications with cased 
colors and arms shouldered, between the two armies, French 
and American. Cornwallis escaped the humiliation of being 
present, by a convenient fit of sickness ; but the defeat was 
entire and complete, and every person felt that the war had 
come to an end. There was great rejoicing in every American 
heart. Hardships, until now all Ijut unbearable, were swal- 
lowed up in victory ; joy-bells were ringing, and the watchmen 
in the streets announced the intelligence with tears of thank- 
fulness, as they made their nightly rounds in the city of Phila- 
delphia. Men, awakened from their slumbers, rushed to the 
windows to be sure. Congress assembled very early in the 
mornino-, and in the afternoon succeedinsr marched to the Lu- 
theran Church, where the Te Deuin of thanksgiving from full 
hearts ascended to the God of Battles, for signal mercies 
vouchsafed to the youngest nation on the globe, beginning then 
and there a career of great prosperity. England saw that the 
conquest of such a people, under the circumstances, was im- 
possible, and the populace demanded that the ministry which 
had advised on the war should be dismissed. The House of 
Commons denounced farther action, and George III. was com- 
peHed by his weakness to submit. 

18. The greatest peril that ever menaced a country was 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 179 

now pressing upon the United States, although the war was 
virtually enclcd. There was no commerce, no trade, no manu- 
factures ; and agriculture had long been neglected, because of j 
the war, which, since the battle of Lexington, had decimated ! 
the people, and unsettled all avocations. Many, who were ! 
wealthy when the struggle commenced, were now penniless, i 
and the currency, which had been forced into circulation for 
some time past, w^ould buy nothing. The army was almost in 
open rebclliTon, because there was no prospect of their services 
being acknowledged by the scanty pay to which they were en- , 
titled, and without which they could not, in many cases, reach 
home. Under similar circumstances, during the Commonwealth i 
in England, the Puritan soldiers compelled the Parliament to | 
succumb to their demands, and their action made Cromwell ; 
dictator ; but Congress contained men of a higher tj^pe than 
the Parliament thfbt was dismissed by Cromwell, and the incor- '■ 
ruptible Washington was superior to the promptings of ambi- i 
tion. Petitions to Congress for redress could not be answered ' 
from an empty treasury, and the angry troops offered the crown j 
to the commander-in-chief; but the influence of the great and ; 
good man prevailed with both parties to prevent violent meas- I 
ures, and every diificulty was accommodated by his interven- j 
tion, so that there was no period of internecine strife to j 
encourage the English government to resume hostilities from 
the points which were still in their hands. 

19. Peace, long since established (January 20, 1783), and ' 

the independence of the United States substantially recognized j 

by all the European governments, was formally inaugurated by 1 

the treaty signed in Paris, September 3, 1783. The army was 
disbanded, and the commander-in-chief carried wuth him to 
Mount Vernon such devotional regard as has been increasing , 

in the hearts of Americans ever since that day for a ruler of 
priceless integrity. 



180 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



CHAPTER XV. 

EVENTS FROM AN ENGLISH VIEW, 17G0 TO 1778. 

FIRST EIGIITEEX TEARS OF THE REIGN OF GEORGE III. — EUROPEAN AND AMERICAN 
WARS THE DEFENCE OF GIBRALTAR. 

1. It will now be interesting to view these events, which 
were transpiring in Canada and the United States, from an 
English stand-point, and to look at affairs in that quarter during 
the same period. It was on the 25th of October, 1760, and at 
the age of twenty -two, that George III. entered upon the 
longest and, in some respects, the most prosperous reign in 
the annals of England. In the following year he was married 
to Charlotte, Princess of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, and the royal 
couple were crowned with magnificent ceremonies at "West- 
minster. At this time the power and glory of William Pitt 
Avere at their height, the French had been defeated in India 
and America and on the continent ; but these triumphs had 
been gained at an immense expense, and a party headed by the 
Earl of Bute, then the most influential adviser of the king, was 
solicitous for peace. While peace was being negotiated the 
kings of France and Spain entered into a secret compact, which 
resulted to England's disadvantage. This arrangement, called 
the family compact, because the kings who made it were both 
Bourbons, came to the knowledge of William Pitt, who, to 
avert the calamity, proposed a war against Spain ; but, being 
unable to prevail, he retired from office, being succeeded by the 
Earl of Bute. Three months after, however, the new ministry 
was obliged to declare war against Spain, which greatly added 
to Pitt's popularity, the more so because the grandest achieve- 
ments of the war — the conquest of Havana and Manilla in 
the East Indies — were planned by Pitt himself. In' 1762 
France and Spain, humbled by their losses, were anxious for 
peace, and a treaty was signed at Paris, Feb. 10, 1763. Soon 
after the unpopularity of the Earl of Bute became so great that 
he was obliged to resign, and Sir George Grenville succeeded 
him as prime minister, whose administration was characterized 
by the prosecution of Wilkes and the taxation of the American 
colonies. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 181 

2. John Wiikes was a member of Parliament and editor of 
a newspaper called "The North Briton." In this paper he 
made an attack on the personal character of the king, for which 
his paper was seized, and Wilkes imprisoned in the Tower. 
A few days after, he was liberated by a writ of habeas corpus 
before the Court of Common Pleas. He was next arraigned 
before the bar of Commons for libel, but escaped to Paris. He 
was then expelled from the Commons, and a sentence of out- 
lawry passed against him. In 1768 he returned to England, 
and was elected to Parliament for Middlesex ; but he was not 
allowed to take his seat. ''These attacks on the freedom of 
elections and liberty of the press made Wilkes, although a man 
of corrupt morals, extremely popular, and excited much feeling 
throughout the country. At length, in 1774, government grew 
tired of this persecution. He was elected lord-mayor, and 
allowed to sit in Parliament. The English colonies in the wilds 
of America, although harassed by Indian and colonial wars, had 
grown in numbers and prosperity. They had received but little 
fostering care or kindly encouragement from the mother country, 
yet their affection for England was both ardent and sincere. 
They had fought in her battles, and rejoiced in her triumphs. 
They gloried, too, in the rights of English freemen, and were 
determined that these rights should flourish in the new land to 
which they had been transplanted. One of these rights, best 
known and valued, was that of not being taxed without their 
own consent. Once, during Sir Robert Walpole's administra- 
tion, a suggestion was made to levy a tax on the American 
colonies. 'He who shall propose it will be a much bolder man 
than I am,' was the wise statesman's reply. And in the days 
of ^\"alpole the colonies were far less capable of resi.sting than 
in 1765. But in 1765 the bolder man was found. In that year 
Sir George Grenville, at the suggestion of the king, not only 
proposed, but carried through Parliament, an act imposing a 
stamp duty on the North American colonies, — colonies unrep- 
resented in the Parliament of England. Sir George Grenville 
had retired from office when news came across the waters that 
the indignant colonies, from Massachusetts to Georgia, had, 
with one consent, resisted this unjust attack upon their English 
rights and liberties. When the announcement was made, Pitt, 
now Earl of Chatham, rose in the House of Commons, and ex- 
claimed : ' I rejoice that America has resisted. Three millions 
of people so dead to all the feelings of liberty as voluntarily to 



182 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

submit would have been fit instruments to make slaves of the 
rest.'" 

3. We have already traced the results in America. . The 
voice of the latter broke forth in a Declaration of Independence, 
which has already stood a hundred years. For seven years 
England withstood this declaration, and the war progressed as 
we have recorded it. The conduct of the English king and 
ministry was censured during the whole war by a strong party 
in Parliament. In June, 1781, a motion was made in the House 
of Commons " that his majesty's ministers ought immediately to 
take every possible measure for concluding peace with our 
American colonics." The motion was ably defended by Wil- 
liam Pitt, the youthful son of the great orator and statesman, 
who, in 1765, had so strongly censured the taxing of the colonies. 
By the year 1782 the war had become so unpopular that the 
ministry of Lord North resigned. A new Whig ministry suc- 
ceeded, and a treaty of peace was concluded, by which the 
Independence of the United States of America was acknowl- 
edged. But England did not lose all her American posses- 
sions by this disaster; there still remains the loyal, prosperous 
Dominion of Canada. When Mr. Adams, the first American 
minister to the court of St. James, appeared before the king, 
his majesty said : "I was the last man in the kingdom, sir, to 
consent to the Independence of America ; but now it is granted 
I shall be the last man in the world to sanction a violation 
of it." 

4. It must not be forgotten, however, that England was in 
the midst of great European wars while she sought to quell 
the revolution in America, and, if her efforts in the latter 
resulted unfavorably, they were triumphant in the former. The 
closing year of the contest in Europe was marked by the 
defence of Gibraltar, one of the bravest and noblest achieve- 
ments ever recorded in the annals of war. " The recovery of 
this strong fortress had for years been the constant hope and 
aim of the Spaniard. Again and again had it been attempted, 
but the firm old rock, and the firm hearts upon it, had defied 
every attack. At length, in the summer of the .year 1782, 
after the fortress had been in a state of siege for three years, 
vast preparations were made for an assault, Ijcforc which it was 
deemed that Gibraltar must inevitably fall. Forty thousand 
French and Spaniards were assembled for the land attack. In 
the bay floated a formidable fleet. Ten huge floating-batteries, 
made fire-proof, as the besiegers fondly believed, and armed 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 183 

with two Imiidred and twelve brass guns, threw bomb-shells 
into the fortress, whilst one thousand pieces of artillery 
thundered against the rock. ' Is it taken ? ' was the first ques- 
tion asked by the Spanish king each morning on awaking. 
' Not yet,' was the daily repeated reply. ' Well ; but it must 
soon bo ours,' was the response of the confident monarch. To 
resist this mighty array, one of the greatest ever brought 
ao-ainst a sinc'le fortress, there were but seven thousand Eno;- 
lish soldiers, commanded by General Elliott, and in the bay a 
single brigade of gunboats, under Captain Curtis. On the 
morning of the 13th of Septemljer were seen crowds of 
Spaniards assembled on the hills which surround Gibraltar. 
From tliis natural amphitheatre they gazed upon a scene of 
intense and fearful interest. By nine o'clock the enemies' 
fleet came within gunshot of the walls of 'the fortress, and a 
fire was opened upon it, wliich was soon returned. Four . 
huudrcd pieces of heavy artillery made the hills resound. All 
day long the firing was kept up, but early in the evening the 
hearts of the assailants failed them, for the red-hot shot from 
the garrison had set the ships on fire, and by midnight ' the 
only flashes from the floating-batteries were the flames that were 
consumins: them.' At five o'clock on the mornins: of the 14th 
one of these huge constructions blew up with a fearful explosion, 
and a second soon shared the same fate. What followed on the 
part of the conquerors is become a household word, — a touching 
and a sacred tale, which two generations of Englishmen have 
learned in the cradle, and which succeeding generations will tell 
to their children, as the best exemplification of the axiom, that 
the bravest are ever the most merciful. On shore General 
Elliott ordered the firing to cease, whilst the noble crew of 
Captain Curtis, those few but gallant spirits, dashed among the 
burning wrecks, to save, not their own men, but the drowning, 
burning Spaniards, who, clinging to spars, or still on the blazing 
decks, were exposed to a fearful death. From the flames and 
from the waves tAvo hundred and fifty were rescued by the 
intrepidity of this noble enemy. The French and Spanish 
navy was still formidable, and they hoped that by intercepting 
supplies to the garrison they might yet compel Gibraltar to 
surrender. This hope vanished when Admiral Lord Howe, on 
the 11th of October, sailed through the straits, and a few days 
later landed stores and troops within the devoted fortress. The 
hopeless siege w^as continued, but with little spirit on the part 
of the Spaniards, until the peace was signed. From the rock 



184 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

of Gibraltar, at the proud height of fourteen hundred and 
thirty-seven English feet, the flag of Great Britain still waves 
over those narrow straits, the key of the INIediterranean, which 
she has so bravely won, and so nobly guarded." 

5. The year succeeding the treaty William Pitt, second son 
of the Earl of Chatham, became prime minister. He was only 
in the twenty-fifth year of his age when he thus assumed, the 
government of the country. With great ability and success 
he held the reins of state for seventeen years. The period of 
his administration was an eventful one, and his statesmanship 
was quite eqdal to that of his illustrious father. The elder Pitt, 
created in 1766 Earl of Chatham, had, in 1778, been committed 
to an honored tomb in Westminster Abbev. 



CHAPTER XVI. 

ENGLAND DURING THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY. 

KELIGION LITEEATURE — DISTIXGUISHED WRITERS THE MINISTRY OLD 

AND NEW STYLE ARCHITECTURE PAINTING MUSIC MANUFACTURES 

TRAVELLING. 

1. Geoege Whitfield and John Wesley appeared in the 
early part of the eighteenth century to awaken the people to 
greater piety. They had been members of the same college 
at the university of Oxford, and were distinguished during 
their studies for their hio'h moral character. It was while 
pursuing their studies that, through their rigid mode of life, 
they acquired the nickname of "Methodists," — a name subse- 
quently given the religious society of which they were founders. 
These two men went forth proclaiming the simple gospel, from 
which the most astonishing results followed. Wesley, although 
a clergyman of the Established Church, found himself denied 
the church i)ulpits, on account of his peculiarities. This gave 
rise to the itinerancy, — a distinguished feature of Methodism. 
At Wesley's death there were seventy-one thousand Meth- 
odists in England and forty-eight thousand in America. 
Whitfield struck a higher vein of society, infusing religious 
zeal therein. He was aided by the Countess of Huntingdon, 
which accounts for his success in the upper classes. The 
Methodism of Wesley found its warmest welcome among 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 185 

the working-classes. The powerful and eloquent preaching 
of these men, together Avith the eiforts of Watts, Doddridge, 
and others, was the means, in the hands of God, of doing 
much good. The efforts of these men were followed by such 
men as Fletcher, the vicar of Maudsley, the elder Venn, John 
Newton, and Rowland Hill. 

2. Until 1778 the Roman Catholics in the whole realm were 
subjected to the severest privations, being denied the right to 
say mass or teach the youth concerning their doctrines. How- 
ever, in this year a bill was passed allowing Romanists to 
engage in education without being subjected to imprisonment, to 
exercise the rites of their religion, and to enjoy their property; 
but they were not allowed to hold any civil office. " The con- 
cessions of the Relief Bill, limited as they were, met with 
some opposition in England, and when it was proposed to 
extend them to Scotland the most tumultuous excitement broke 
out in that country. A society was formed, called 'The 
Protestant Association,' the object of which was to oppose all 
relief to Roman Catholics. The president was Lord George 
Gordon, a fanatical nobleman, who is supposed, from some 
of his extravagances, to have been insane. The "Protestant 
Association" soon extended to England, and an immense 
body of men, animated by a spirit of bitter intolerance, 
ranged themselves under the command of Lord George. 
On the 2d of June, 1780, sixty thousand members of this asso- 
ciation assemljled in St. George's Fields, and thence pro- 
ceeded through London to the Parliament House, bearing 
a petition, signed, it is said, with the names or marks of 
one hundred and twenty thousand Protestants. Entering 
the house, the rabble made the old hall of Westminster ring 
with their shouts of ' No Popery ! ' 'No Popery ! ' The 
riots continued during the week, from the 2d to the 9th of 
June, with ever-increasing violence. On the night of the 7th 
thirty-six fires l)]azed in different parts of the city, whilst the 
uproar of the mob and the firing of the military added to the 
terror of the scene. At length, by armed force, the rioters were 
subdued, but not before five hundred lives had been lost and 
an immense amount of property destroyed. Lord IMansfield's 
beautiful mansion and valuable law-library fell a sacrifice to the 
fury of the mob. When this learned and aged judge pleaded, 
a few days later, the lawfulness of employing the military 
against the rioters, he made a slight but touching allusion to 
his own great loss. ' I have founded my opinion Avithout con- 



18G HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

suiting my books,' said he ; adding, ' Indeed, I have no books 
to consult.' These riots and the excited state of feeling in 
Scotland prevented the extension of the Relief Bill to that 
country." 

3. The literature of this period was similar in tone to the 
state of the church, and the English essayists sought to elevate 
its character. They also founded periodical literature, their 
essays ])eing issued in small tri- weekly sheets, at the cost of a 
penny each. The first of these papers, called the "Tattler," 
was established by Sir Richard Steele. "The Spectator" was 
the most distinguished of these periodicals ; its columns being 
enriched by the writings of Addison. Jonathan Swift, the Dean 
of St. Patrick's, was the principal wit of Queen Anne's reign. 
He was a powerful writer, b.ut his personal character was bad. 
The last nine years of his life w^ere spent in , hopeless insanity. 
In the early part of the eighteenth century the poet Pope began 
to attract attention, and he was surrounded by such talent as 
Swift, Ga}^ Arbuthnot, Parnell, and Prior. Pope gave us the 
first English translation of Homer's Iliad and Odyssey. The 
other poets of this period were Young, Thomson, and Gray, 
and, later. Goldsmith and Cowper. This century gave rise to 
prose fiction. The first author in this style was Daniel Defoe, 
who wrote " Robinson Crusoe." He was succeeded by Richard- 
son, Fielding, Smollett, and Sterne. The works of these 
authors were interesting in their day, but are too coarse to 
meet the refined tastes of our time. The prose writers of this 
period are headed by Hume, whose excellent "History of 
England " is still popular. His contemporaries were Robertson, 
who wrote a celebrated " History of the Reign of the Emperor 
Charles V. ; " and Gibbon, the able author of the "Decline and 
Fall of the Roman Empire." The religious infidelity of Hume 
and Gibbon is the only cloud on their works. Macpherson and 
Chatterton were also celebrated Avriters in 1760. 

4. But the greatest literary hero of his age was Dr. Samuel 
Johnson, the sage of Lichfield, the compiler of the celebrated 
" Dictionary of the English Language." He was an essayist, 
moralist, l^iographer, and poet. Blackstone's valuable " Com- 
mentaries on the Laws of England" were pu])lished in 1765. 
The female writers were Miss Burney, afterwards Madame 
D'Arblay, who wrote the agrceal)le and celebrated novels, 
"Evelina," and " Cecilia ; " the learned Greek scholar, Elizabeth 
Carter; INIrs. Barbauld, Lady Mtiry Wortley IMontagu, and the 
crowning glory of female authorship, Hannah More. In her 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 187 

pleasant home at Cowslip Green, and later at Barley Wood, 
this good and gifted woman drew aronnd her the best and most 
accomplished men and women of her day. The great Dr. 
Johnson, often rough and uncouth in his manners to others, was 
ever gentle and affectionate towards Hannah More. Garrick, 
the dramatist, Horace Walpole, Newton, Wilberforce, and Sir 
Joshua Reynolds, were all numbered among her friends. 

5. It was only with the beginning of the eighteenth century 
that the king's chief officer, who was the lord treasurer, re- 
ceived the name of premier, or prime minster. Subsequently 
this minister became the chief executive officer in the realm, by 
whom all the principal departments of government are filled. 
The men at the heads of these departments, with the premier 
at their head, constitute the ministry, to whom the administra- 
tion of public affairs is entrusted. The great architects of 
the eighteenth century were Sir Christopher Wren and Van- 
brugh. The great painters, named in chronological order, are 
Sir Godfrey Kneller and Hogarth. The latter died in 1764, 
and four jcavs later "The Royal Academy of Arts" was 
founded. Sir Joshua Reynolds was founder of the English 
school of painters. His associates were West, Wilson, and 
Gainsborough. Music was also making great progress during 
this period. The oratorio, one of the most magnificent triumphs 
of musical talent, was brought ont in 1770, by Frederick 
Handel, who had made England his home. 

6. The industrial arts were also making progress. Hitherto 
the woollen manufacture had been one of the greatest impor- 
tance, but now the manufacture of cotton became the great 
source of English wealth. In 1764 James Hargreaves invented 
the spinning-jenny, which was made to spin, first eight, and 
then sixteen, spindles at a time. A few years later Sir Richard 
Arkwright, at first a poor barber, gave to the world his great 
invention of spinning by rollers. But, to crown all, in 1785, 
Watt invented the steam-engine, by which all machinery of all 
inventions was subsequently driven. "The silk manufacture 
increased and improved greatly, especially when the revocation 
of the Edict of Nantes had brought many skilful French artisans 
into England. Early in this century the Silk Weavers' Com- 
pany reported the manufacture in England as twenty times 
greater in extent than in the year 1664, and the silk ecpial in 
quality to that imported from France. Until the year 1715 the 
weavers were dependent upon Italy for their supply of silk 
thread, in which country the machinery for its manufacture had 



188 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

been brought to great perfection. In the above-named year an 
English silk merchant Avcnt to Italy, determined to learn the 
secret of this superior machinery. After much dilliculty he 
obtained employment in an humble capacity in one of the 
Italian mills. Pleading great destitution, ho was permitted to 
sleep in the work-room; here ho employed his nights in 
making drawings of the machinery. After obtaining the req- 
uisite information, ho left his Kalian employers, returned to 
England, and, in 171!), eslal)lished at Derl)y, in cxmnection 
with his brothers, the iirst English silk factory. In the manu- 
facture of porcelain and earthenware the most useful discoveries 
and improvements Avere made during the course of this century. 
In I7(i3 AVedgwood produced the beautiful article known as 
queen's ware." 

7. Travelling, oven until the middle of this centur}^, pre- 
sented no conveniences or comforts until the method of trans- 
portation l)y canals Avas introdiic(>d. The Iirst was the Bridge- 
water Canal, constructed by the Duke of Bridgewater, in 1G55. 
It produced a great sensation. Soon after, Brindley, the 
engineer of the earliest canals, cut through a hill a tunnel 
nearly three thousand yards in length. This was one of the 
most Avonderfid achievements of its day. Society in England 
during this period was at a low ebb, particularly among the 
Avomen ; but an inspiration to a higlu>r and better^ifc came Avith 
the progress in the arts and industries. 



CHAPTER XVII. 

THE CANADAS, 1780 TO 1840. 

EVENTS IN THE HISTORY OF UPI'EU AND LOAVER CANADA — THE DOMINION AND 
UNION OF THE TUOVINCES THE REBELLION. 

1. Turning again to the main thread of our narrative, let 
us look at Canada internally, in her progress after the ReA''olu- 
tionary war, and avo may at once state that the issue of that war 
Avas attended Avith considerable advantage to Canada, A large 
number of disbanded English soldiers and loyalists from the 
United States, Avho had sought refuge in the British territories, 
received liberal grants of land in the Upper l*rovince, border- 
insr on the St. LaAvrence and Lake Ontario. These new settlers 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 189 

were termed " United Empire Loyalists," tind were greatly en- 
couraged by the English government. They received not only 
a full supply of land, but also the necessary farming utensils, 
building materials, and even subsistence for two years. These 
inducements not oidy increased the settlements in Canada, but 
the appearance of it. A wonderful change Avas soon produced, 
and a great extent of wilderness converted into fruitful iields. 
Kingston, on the site of Fort Frontenac, rose into commercial 
importance, and was for a long time the capital of Ontario. 
The town of York, afterward Toronto, founded soon after by 
General Simcoe, rose ra|)idl)', and everywhere Canada moved 
forward in prosperity. With this advancement came a demand 
for representative government, and in 1791 Canada was divided 
into two provinces, called Upper and Lower, afterwards 
Ontario and (^uc^bec, over which representative governments 
were established on a British constitution basis. A governor 
was appointed for each province, and to him was given the same 
power for convoking, proroguing, and dissolving the represen- 
tative Assembly that the king himself enjoyed in England. A 
legislative council, with members appointed by the king for 
life, was also estal)lished. There was also an executive 
council, appointed by the king, to advise and assist the governor 
in the performance of his executive duties. The representative 
Assembly in each province had but little direct power. It 
formed a concurrent body in the general Legislature. Each 
provincial government had control over all matters pertaining 
to the province, excepting the subjects of religion, its ministers 
and revenues, and the waste lands belonging to the crown. 
Acts affecting these sul)jects could not bo valid without the 
sanction of the King and Parliament of England. 

2. In 171)7 General Frescott was made Governor of Lower 
Canada, and in 1803 a decision of the Chief Justice of Montreal 
declared slavery unlawful in that country, and a few individuals 
held in bondage were freed. In 1807, apprehensions being felt 
of a war with the LTnitcd States, Sir James Craig, an officer of 
distinction, was sent out as Governor-General of the British 
Provinces. The principal events of the war of 1812, so far as 
they belong to Canadian history, will Ijc related in a subse(|uent 
chapter of this work. Soon after the close of that war internal 
dissensions began to disturb the quiet of the two provinces, but 
more particularly that of Lower Canada. So early as 1807 
the Assembly of the province made serious complaints of an 
midue intiueuce of other branches of government over their 



190 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

proceedings ; but in vain they demanded that the judges, who 
were dependent upon the executive and removable by him, 
shouki be expelled from their body. 

3, The administration of Sir G. Drummond, in 1815, was 
marked by a discontent among the people that found emphatic 
expression. He was succeeded in the office of governor- 
general by Sir John Sherbrooke, who reached Canada in 1816, 
and by whom harmony was restored to the provinces. He 
effected a compromise with the Assembly as to the support of 
the government; but, in 1818, this governor was succeeded by 
the Duke of Eichmond, who reversed the pacific policy of his 
predecessor, and exercised a tyrannical rule. However, in 
1819, the life of the duke suddenly terminated in an attack of 
hydrophobia, and, in the following year, Lord Dalhousie was 
appointed to succeed him. He immediately became involved in 
the same difficulties with the Assembly that his predecessor had 
encountered, and, assuming even a higher tone, demanded a 
large sum as a permanent annual grant for the uses of the 
government. But the Assembl}" still adhered to their purposes 
until a compromise was agreed upon. There seemed to be a 
growing dislike to the tyranny of the governor-general by the 
people ; and in 1823 the popular cause was strengthened by 
the insolvency of the receiver-general or treasurer of the 
province, who proved to be indebted to the public over four 
hundred thousand dollars. 

4. Lord Dalhousie was absent in 1825, during which time 
the government was administered by Sir Francis Burton, who, 
by yielding nearly all the points in dispute, succeeded in pacify- 
ing the Asseml>ly. But every concession made by the governor 
to the Assembly only created other demands on the part of that 
body, and, on the return of Lord Dalhousie, in 182G, the 
dissensions between the Assembly and the governor became 
violent. On the meeting of the Assembly in the following year 
Mr. Papineau was elected speaker. He was the leader of the 
opposition to the government, and the governor refused to 
sanction his appointment. The house continued obstinate, and 
the result was, no session was held during the following winter. 
Li 1828 a petition, signed by eighty-seven thousand residents 
of Canada, was presented to the king, complaining of the con- 
duct of Lord Dalhousie, and also his predecessors, and demand- 
ing compliance with the policy of the Assembly. The petition 
was referred to the House of Commons, and that body favored 
its demands. This report was received by the Canadians with 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 191 

the greatest satisfaction, and their joy was increased when, 
near the close of the same year. Sir James Kempt was sent out 
as governor, with instructions to carry the new policy into 
effect. The judges, although they refused to resign their places 
in the Assembly, withdrew from its sittings, and seats in the 
executive council were even offered to Neilson, Papineau, and 
other popular leaders. 

5. Lord Ajdmer succeeded to the government in 1830, 
giving assurances that he would carry out the liberal policy of 
the Assembly. The home government, however, had instructed 
him that certain casual revenues, arising from the sale of lands, 
the cutting of timber, and other sources, were still to be con- 
sidered as belonging to the crown, and were to be appropriated 
chiefly to the payment of the stipends of the clergy of the 
Established Church. When these instructions became k^o^^l, 
the designs of government met with violent opposition, and the 
Assembly declared that " under no circumstances, and upon no 
consideration whatever, would it abandon or compromise its 
claim of control over the whole public revenue." A long peti- 
tion was drawn up, setting forth the grievances of the people. 
It received the endorsement of the government, and soon after 
the British Parliament conferred upon the provincial Assembly 
full control over the most important revenues ; but, in turn, 
permanent salaries were demanded for the judges, the governor, 
and a few of the chief executive officers. " The Assembly con- 
sented to make the required provision for the judges, but on 
the condition that the casual revenues, which had been sought 
to be reserved to the crown, should be appropriated for this 
purpose. This condition, however, the home government 
refused to accede to. A large majority of the Assembly voted 
against making a permanent jDrovision for the governor and 
other executive officers, on the ground that the executive, not 
being dependent on the representatives of the people for a naval 
and military establishment, would, in case of such permanent 
establishment, have been entirely free from that provincial 
control and dependence essential to public security and wel- 
fare." 

G. The province, in and through its representatives, was 
now in direct conflict with the crown. The Assembly now 
began to name conditions for the payment of salaries, and de- 
manded that the Legislature appointed by the crown should be 
abolished, and a new one instituted that should compare 
somewhat with the United States Senate, with members elected 



192 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

t 

by popular vote. In 1833 a petition iivglno: this measure 
was truusniitted to the king, and in reply the British ministry 
not only declared- the proposed ehange disloyal, but hinted at 
the possibility that events might unliai)pily force upon Parlia- 
ment the exercise of its supreme authority to put a stop to the 
internal dissensions of Canada, or even to modify the charter of 
the Canadas. This intelligence threw the Assenddy into a fury, 
and it refused to pass any measures •co(')peratiug with the 
ministry, and the session of 1834 was passed in the preparation 
of anotlier petition or remonstrance, setting forth the grievance 
of the provinces, and closing with a peremptory demand for an 
elective legislative council. ]\leanwhik', affairs changed in 
England, and in 1835 the Earl of (iosford Avas sent out as 
governor of Canada. He at once promised, in an indirect way, 
the speedy performance of all that the Assembly demanded. 
But if these promises or intimations produced any good feeling, 
it was speedily swept away when his real instructions from the 
home government Avere made known. Lord Gosford probably 
concealed his instructions from the crown, Aviih a view to ol)- 
taining the needed funds, but his designs were discovered 
before he gained his point. Sir Francis 13ond Head, who had 
been sent out as governor of Upper Canada, was the means of 
disclosing the instructions to l)()th governors. The British 
ministry had proclaimed that "the king was most unwilling to 
admit, as open to debate, the question Avhether one of the vital 
principles of the provincial government shall undergo altera- 
tion." 

7. The excitement that followed these dcA^elopments Avas 
intense ; " the Assend)ly not only complained of disappointment, 
but charged the governor Avith perlidy ; the customary sup- 
plies Avere withheld, and no provision Avas made for the public 
service. In the autumn of 183(3 the majority of the Assend)ly, 
in an address presented to the governor, declared their positive 
adherence to their former demands for an elective council ; 
maintained that they themselves, in opi)ositi()n to the then 
existing legislative council, 'the representatives of the Tory 
party,' Avere the only legitimate and authorized organ of the 
people ; and finally they expressed their resolution to grant 
no more supplies until the great Avork of justice and reform 
should be completed." A crisis had noAV come. 

8. Apjicarances declared that violent measures Avould ensue. 
The provincial Assembly Avas firm in its radical demands, 
while the ministry were unAvilling to concede the monarchical 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 103 

prerogatives. "Early in 1S37 llic lirilish Parlimiioiil, by a 
vote of three IniiiTlred and eiii-hloeii to til'ty-six, declared Ihc 
iiie-^iiedieney of making the !cgislaliv(>, council (dcH-live by llic 
people, and of rendering Uk^ executive council responsilde lo 
tlio Assembly. Inlelligence of (his vote occasioned violent 
commotions in theCanadas, and various meetings of the people 
were held, in which it was alhrmed that the decision of Tar- 
liamcnt had extinguished all ho[)es of justice, and that no far- 
ther attempts should be madt^ to obtain rcMlress from that 
quarter. A general conviMition Avas [)roposed, to consider what 
farther measures were advisable, and a reconunendation was 
made to discontinues the use of J'ritish nianufactur<\s, and of 
all articles paying taxes." 

9. The situation now became! unpleasant, and (Jov. (Josford, 
feaiing tlu> inlluence of I'apineau, early in dune,' 18.')7, called 
upon the Governor of New JJrunswick for a regiment of Iroojjs, 
and issued a proclamation Avarning the people against all 
attem[)ts to seduce them from their allegiance. Me(>tings of the 
loyalists were also ludd in INfontreal and (Quebec, condemning 
the violent proceedings of ihc Assembly, and deprecating both 
the objects and the measures of the so-called patriot party. In 
August, Lord (Josford called a meeting of the provincial Legis- 
lature, and submitted measures for amending tlu^ legislative 
comicil ; but tlu^ repi-esentatives adhered lo their former ])ur- 
[)oses of Avithholding sup[)lies until all their gi'ievances shoidd 
bo redressed, when the governor, exprc^ssing his regret at 
measures which he considered a vital annihilation of the con- 
stitution, prorogued the Asscnd)ly." A resort to arms seems 
now to have becMi resoIve(l u[)on by th(! j)oi)ular leaders of tlui 
[)eople, as against tlu; govermnent of (Jreat liritain, and it Avas 
no doubt hoped by this class that the struggle Avould result in 
complete independence. A central committee was formed, with 
hea(l-(piartcrs at JNIontroal, and an association known as " Sons 
of Liberty " Avas organized by tliis management, which marched 
in procession through the streets, demonstrating a teeling of 
disloyalty, or dislike, to the l>ri1ish yoke;, and calling upon the 
peoi)le to rally round the standard of freedom. 

10. Violent demonstrations against the crown officers were 
now Avitnessed in many (jiiarters. In ihr county of Two Moun- 
tains, north of the Ottawa and adjoining Montreal on the west, 

ythe people deposed their magistrates, and n^organi/ed the militia. 

mder otficers of their oAvn choice, thereby overriding Lritish 

authority in that section. These proceedings were soon after 



194 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

imitated in other places. In six counties south- west of the St. 
Lawrence, all persons holding office undcl" the crown were 
forced to resign their situation or leave the country. Loyalist 
associations were also formed in opposition to the freedom 
party, and these, backed by the Catholic clergy, exhorted the 
people to loyalty. In Montreal the " Sons of Liberty " were 
attacked in the streets and dispersed by the loyalists, and, 
although none were killed, many were seriously wounded. The 
office of the " Vindicator " was destroyed, and the residence of 
Papineau, the great opposition agitator, was set on fire by the 
loyalists, but was saved from the flames after great exertion. 
Exaggerated reports of these doings spread through the country, 
creating the wiklest excitement. The disloyal movement was 
now assuming such shape that the government issued warrants 
for the arrest of twenty-six of the most prominent agitators, of 
whom seven were members of the Assembly, including the 
popular Papineau, the speaker of that body. Several were 
arrested, Ijut the speaker could not be found. Considerable 
opposition was put forth against the parties endeavoring to 
make the arrests, and many rescues were effected. " In the 
latter part of November strong detachments of government 
troops, commanded by Cols. Gore and Wetherall, were sent to 
attack armed bodies of insurgents, assembled under Papineau, 
Brown, and Neilson, at the villages of St. Denis and St. Charles 
on the Sorel. Col. Gore proceeded against St. Denis, which 
he attacked with great spirit ; but was repulsed with a loss of 
ten killed, ten wounded, and six missing. Col. Wetherall was 
more successful. Although St. Charles was defended by a 
thousand men, the place was carried altera severe engagement, 
in which the insurgents lost nearly three hundred in killed and 
wounded. This affair suppressed the insurrection in that 
quarter. The peasantry, panic-stricken, threw down their 
arms ; Neilson was taken prisoner, and Brown and Papineau 
sought safety by escaping to the United States." 

iL The work of suppressing the insurrection continued. 
In December, 1837, thirteen hundred regular and volunteer 
troops were sent against the districts of Two Mountains and 
Terrebonne, which Avere still in a state of rebellion. "At St. 
Eustache an ol)stinate stand was made by the insurgents, Avho 
were finally defeated with severe loss. Numbers of the inhabi- 
tants were remorselessly massacred, and their beautiful village 
burned. ' The village of St. Benoit, which had been the chief 
seat of insurrection, surrendered without resistance ; but such 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 195 

was the rage of the royalists, who had heen phmclcred and 
driven out of the country, that they reduced a large portion of 
the village to ashes. Several of the patriot leaders were taken, 
and,, at the close of the year 1837, the Avhole province of Lower 
Canada was again in a state of tranquillity." 

12. But the war was not contined to Quebec or Lower 
Canada. While these incidents of strife were transpiring in the 
lower province, events of great importance took phice in Upper 
Canada. A discontented party had arisen there, demanding 
reforms quite as distasteful to Great Britain as those urged in 
Lower Canada, and in 188G the Assemljly had stopped the or- 
dinary supplies ; but in the following year, when a new election 
for members was held, the influence of the governor. Sir Francis 
Head, succeeded in causing the election of a majority of mem- 
bers friendly to the existing government. " From this time 
tranquillity prevailed until the breaking out of the insurrection 
in the lower province, when the leaders of the popular party, 
who had long desired a separation from Great Britain, seized 
the opportunity for putting their plans in execution. During 
the night of the 5th of Deceml)er, 1837, about five hundred 
men, under the command of jMackenzie, assembled at Mont- 
gomery's Tavern, four miles from Toronto, with a view of taking 
the city by surprise. Several persons proceeding to the city 
were taken prisoners, but, one of them escaping, the alarm was 
given, and by morning three hundred loyalists wore mustered 
under arms, and the design of attacking the place was aban- 
doned." On the 7th the loyalists marched to the attack, and 
the insurgents were easily driven back and many of them made 
prisoners. 

13. The excitement now spreacL along the border of the 
United States. JMackenzie, having fled to Biiffjilo, succeeded 
in raising there a great enthusiasm for the cause of Canada. A 
small force was quickly raised, and Van Rensselaer, Sutherland, 
and others presented themselves as military leaders. This force 
took possession of Navy Island, in the Niagara Channel, and 
erected fortifications on it, which were mounted l)y thirteen 
pieces of camion. A thousand recruits soon flocked to this 
post. Col. ]McXaI) soon arrived opposite the island, but with- 
out the facilities for crossing the channel or successfully can- 
nonading the fortilications. These scenes and incidents drew 
around them many Americans, who were disposed to espouse 
the cause of the "patriots;" but President Van I'uren issued 
two successive proclamations, warning the people (,f the penal- 



196 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

ties ta which an active participation in the conflict would make 
them liable. Gen. Scott was appointed to the command on the 
frontier, with instructions to maintain a strict neutrality. INIean- 
while, a small steamer, named the Caroline, which had been em- 
ployed by the insurgents in the channel for convej'^ing supplies, 
was attacked in the night l)y Capt. Drew, while moored to the 
American shore. One of the crew was killed, and the vessel, 
after being toAved to the middle of the stream, was set on fire. 
The burning craft was carried over the falls. This act, having 
occurred in United States waters, occasioned great excitement 
<6hroughout the Union, and led to an angry correspondence 
between the British and United States ministers. 

14. After the arrival of Gen. Scott on the frontier, the 
insurrection in that vicinity was soon Cjuelled. " Effective meas- 
ures Avere taken to prevent fui'ther supplies and recruits from 
reaching Navy Island, Avhen, the force of the assailants con- 
tinually increasing, and a severe cannonade having been com- 
menced by them, the insurgents evacuated their position, 
on the 14th of January. Van Rensselaer and Mackenzie, 
escaping to the United States, were arrested by the Ameri- 
can authorities, but admitted to bail. A number of the 
fugitives fled to the West, and i\nder their leader, Sutherland, 
formed an establishment on an island in the Detroit Channel. 
After meeting with some reverses this party also voluntarily 
disbanded. Tranquillity was now restored to both Canadas 
Parliament made some changes in the constitution of the lower 
province, and in Ma}^ 1838, the Earl of Durham arrived at 
Quebec, as Governor-General of all British America. Having 
taken the responsibility of banishing to Bermuda, under penalty 
of death in case of return, a number of prisoners taken in the 
late insurrection, and charg^cd with the crime of high treason, 
his conduct met with some censure in the British I'arliament, 
which induced him to resign his commission, and on the 1st of 
November he sailed from Quebec, on his return to England." 

15. Soon after Sir Francis Head, the governor of the upper 
province, left for England, several bands of Americans, invited 
by the "patriots," crossed the Niagara Channel, l)ut Avere driven 
back by the militia. "A party also crossed near Detroit, but, 
after losing a few of their number, Avcre compelled to return. 
On the od of NoA^ember, only two days after the departure of 
the Earl of Durham, a fresh rebellion, Avhich had been organiz- 
ing during the summer along the Avhole line of the American 
frontier, broke out in the southern counties of Montreal Dis- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 197 

trict. At Napierville, west of the Sorel, Dr. Neilson and other 
leaders had collected about four thousand men, several hundred 
of Avhom were detached to open a communication with their 
friends on the American side of the line. These were attacked 
and repulsed b}^ a party of loyalists, who lafterwards posted 
themselves in Odeltown Chapel, where they were in turn at- 
tacked by a large body of the insurgents, headed by Neilson 
himself ; but after a severe engagement the latter were obliged 
to retreat Avith considerable loss. 

16. But while these movements were going on, Sir James 
McDonnell was marchiug at the head of seven regiments of the 
line upon the insurgents. So rapid and effectual were his 
movements that in less than two weeks the whole reliellion in 
Lower Canada was suppressed. Not long after these events 
several hundred Americans sailed from the vicinity of JSackett's 
Harbor, and landed near Prescott, where they were joined by a 
force of "patriots." The party was promptly attacked by the 
government troops, but the latter were repulsed ; but, being re- 
inforced, the invaders were repulsed or taken pi'isoncrs. Later 
in the year a party of Americans crossed from Detroit, and, 
after creating considerable disturbance, they were defeated and 
dispersed. A number of prisoners were ordered to be shot by 
the Canadian authorities immediately after the engagement. 
These events closed the year 1838, and were the closing acts 
of the rebellion. During the struggle the American govern- 
ment had exerted itself to maintain neutrality ; but it was evi- 
dent that the feeling of the people ,of the United States was in 
warm sympathy with the Canadians Avho fought for liberty. 

17. On the 23d of July, 1840, the British Parliament, after 
much bitter discussion, passed an act by which the provinces 
of Upper and Lower Canada were united into one, under the 
name of the Province of Canada. The form of government was 
but little changed ; the governor was appointed by her 
majesty, a legislative council, and a representative assembly. 
The old executive council was abolished. "The members of 
the legislative council were to consist of such persons, not 
being fewer than twenty, as the governor should summon, with 
her majesty's permission, each member to hold his seat during 
life. The members of the representative assembly were to be 
elected by the people, l)ut no person was eligible to an election 
who was not possessed of land, free from all incuml)rances, to 
the value of live hundred pounds sterling. The duties and 
revenues of the two former provinces were consolidated into 



198 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

one fund, from which seventy-five thousand pounds stevlins: 
were made paj^al^le annually for the expenses of the govern- 
ment. After being subject to these charges, the surplus of the 
revenue fund might l)e appropriated as tlie Legislature saw fit, 
but still in accordance with the recommendations of the gov- 
ernor." We turn, at this point, to bring forward the history 
of other events. 



CHAPTER XVIII. 

THE WAR OF 1812-15. 

EVEXTS IN THE UNITED STATES FROM 1780 TO 1840, INCLUDING AN ACCOUNT 
OF THE WAR OF 1812-15, AND OTHER MATTERS. 

1. Affairs across the border, in the United States, were not 
in a state of perfect harmon}% notwithstandiug the Revolutionary 
War had resulted in granting that country its much-valued in- 
dependence. The country was without any adequate form of 
government, and the first important step taken was to secure 
a more perfect system of government. Pliiladelphia was the 
city chosen for the assemblage of a convention to revise the 
articles of confederation, and General Washington was chosen 
president of the Assembly. The whole of the States, except 
Rhode Island, sent delegates, and the deliberations were at 
times anything but calm and conciliatory ; but, after much de- 
bate, the Constitution of the United States was adopted by that 
body, on the 17th of September, 1787, and the work of organ- 
ization having been carried out during the following year, after 
a sutficient number of the States had ratified the articles to give 
them the force of law, the constitution was brought fully into 
operation in 1789. Four of the States delayed their ratification 
for some time ; Rhode Island did not accept the constitution 
nntil 17i)0, but North Carolina, Rhode Island, and the rest 
came under the operation of the law notwithstanding. 

2. General Washing-ton ^vas the President of the Philadel- 
pbia Convention in 1787, and his moral power, more than the 
inliuence of any other single individual, ruled the Union from 
the close of the war until he was elected President of the 
United States, in 1789. His inauguration, on the 30th of April, 
was an almost unanimous outburst of gratitude toward the two- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



199 



fold deliverer of his countr}'. lie liad expelled the British, and 
he had saved the nation from the tyranny of an armed dictator. 
His journey from ]\Iount Vernon to New York, the temporary 
capital, Avas an ovation, and the people Avould have crowned 
him with ilowers in ever}' village. His oath to support the 
Constitution of the United States ^vas taken on the balcony of 
the old Federal Hall. 

3. Want of funds constituted the first difficult}' with which 
the ijovernment was o])liired to contend. The treasury was 

o . . . . 

empty, and the experiment of a democratic republic being 
new, the moneyed men of the world had no credit to bestow 
upon novelties. The Indians were hostile, and there were no 
forces save the unpaid militia to hold them generally in check. 
The navy could not protect the merchant vessels from Algerine 
corsairs. The navigation of the Mississippi was under Spanish 




jcfierson. Knox 



Randolph. Ha 

■Washington's cabinet. 



■Woflluagtoa. 



control, and that nation refused Americans the right to travel 
on its w^aters. The whimsical hatred of George III. prevented 
the nomination of an English minister to the United States 
government, and there was no treaty of commerce between the 
countries. Washinofton called around him the men of Icadinsj 
minds, who represented all parties of the Union, and, firmly 
holding them together, proceeded to arrange the afiiiirs which 
his government must reduce into order, or fail entirely. Jef- 
ferson, Hamilton, Knox, and Randolph were associated with 
him in the cabinet. 



200 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

4. Alexander Hamilton, the Secretary of the Treasury, in- 
duced Congress to assume the lialnlities incurred by the several 
States during the war of independence, and to pay the national 
del)t in its totality. Funds were raised, for the purposes of 
government, by duties on imported goods, and an excise on dis- 
tilled li(|uors. Philadelphia Avas made the home of the United 
States Mint, and of a National Bank. The vigor exhibited in 
these measures established credit. There was, in 1794, an or- 
ganized opposition to the tax on spirits in western Penn- 
sj'lvania, but fifteen hundred militia-men subdued the riot, and 
the strength of the government was fully established. 

5. The Indians had defeated two armies, sent for their sub- 
jugation, in the north-west ; but the appointment of General 
Wayne to the command was the signal of better action. The 
wiser Indians counselled peace, but a long career of rapine in- 
duced the majority to dissent, and the battle of Maumee was 
the consequence, August 20, 1794. The Indians were routed 
and destroyed, their towns laid waste for fifty miles, and they 
were glad to purchase peace l)y a treaty whereby they surren- 
dered the territory now forming Oliio and part of Indiana. 
,Wayne was a terror to the Indians. 

6. England complained that nioneys due from citizens of the 
United States could not be collected, and the answer, unjustly 
given, was, "Your government, by its tyrannous action, has 
destroyed our means of payment ; therefore, look at home." 
Individual Americans did say as much, and called attention to the 
fact that American seamen were still subject to impressment on 
the high seas, as well as fhat posts were held on the frontier, 
as at Detroit and elsewhere. To arrange the matters in dispute 
Chief Justice Jay went to England as envoy extraordinary, in 
1795 ; but the treaty made by him excited much discontent 
among all classes, as it gave England all that was demanded, 
and secured, as Americans thought, no equivalent. The Senate 
became very unpopular because of the ratification of the treaty, 
and its advocates fell under the censure of the public. 

7. The IVIississippi was opened to American ships by a 
treaty with Spain in 1795, which also defined the boundaries of 
Florida. The Dey of Algiers was ol)liged to release American 
prisoners, detained by his government, and, under a treaty 
made with him, the commerce of the ]\Iediterranean was made 
safe and practicable for American vessels. The French Revolu- 
tion and the European war, which was the consequence of other 
nations internieddlino: with France in matters somewhat domes- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 201 

tic, appealed to the sj^mpatliies of the American people with 
great force ; but Washington and his cabinet could not see 
cause for their country to rush into a war on that account, and 
the neutrality of the United States was preserved, as nearly .as 
possible, nnder the circumstances. Genet, the French ambas- 
sador to America, fitted out privateers in American ports, and 
appealed to the people against the president ; but the minister 
was recalled upon Washington's representations. 

8. Washington could hardly keep the peace between con- 
tending parties in his own cabinet. Jeflerson associated with 
Madison, and Randolph led the Repulilican party in the country, 
opposing the assumption of State debts by Congress, the English 
treaty negotiated by Jay, and the establishment of a national 
bank. Alexander Hamilton and John Adams, able men and 
high-principled, led the Federalists, who supported Washington 
and desired a strong central government. Hamilton was rather 
a monarchist than a republican. Washington might have been 
reelected, but he declined a third term, and in the contest 
between parties Adams was elected his successor by two 
electoral votes over Jefferson. The nation had made very 
wonderful advances during the administration of Washington, 
but he was only too much pleased to resign the authority which 
he had borne for so many years. 

9. John Adams was eminently a man of strong measures, 
and immediately after his assumption of office he esteemed it 
necessary to repress the license with which the government, of 
the United States was being assailed by residents in the country 
who thought that America should assist France. The alien and 
sedition laws were the natural result of the preponderance of 
his party, and it was now possi])le for the president to expel 
any foreigner from the country if he saw such action to be ad- 
visal)le. Under the sedition law, fines and imprisonment were 
denounced against any person lil)eirmg the president or the 
government. The people hated those enactments. The revolu- 
tionary government in France treated America with marked, 
discourtesy. American vessels were captured and the flag dis- 
honored, and envoys sent to the French Directory were refused 
an audience. The men who had upheld the cause of France 
were silenced by such a line of conduct. An army was to be 
raised, and General Washington was nominated commander-in- 
chief; l)ut before au}^ decisive action had been taken, Xapoleon 
became first consul, and a better understanding immediately 



202 HISTOEY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

resulted. The people had learned the value of non-intervention 
in European politics. 

10. Thomas Jefi'erson, who succeeded Adams, was the most 
brilliant man that ever lillod the presidential chair, and his terms 
of oliice were marked by many events of large import for the 
United States and the world. The acquisition of Louisiana by 
purchase from Napoleon, in 1803, for iifteen million dollars, 
was an admirable piece of statesmanship. The territory had 
been in the hands of Spain, and had Ijeen a cause of trouble in 
the early days of the repul)lic, and France had come into pos- 
session under an act of cession made 1)y Spain. This purchase 
gave to the United States more than one million square miles 
of land, out of which ten States, two territories, and parts of 
other States have l)cen constructed, besides making Americans 
masters of the Mississippi. 

11. Aaron Burr, who was vice-president during JetFerson's 
first term of office, and who had at first the same numljcr of 
electoral votes for the presidency as Jeflerson himself, — seventy- 
three, — was bitterly antagonistic to Alexander Hamilton, whom 
he challenged to a clucl and shot dead. This event made Burr 
very unpopular, although he was brilliant and very able, and 
even those who disapproved of mau}^ of the measures of 
Hamilton still admired the man. Burr went west during the 

second term, and, under a 

' ^^""^ pretence of having a design 

:: on Xorthcrn jNlexico, was 

suspected of an attempt to 
break up the Union. On 
that charge he was arrested, 
and tried after long imprison- 
ment ; but the case could not 
be estal)lished. Burr was a 
man of • irrea"ular life, and 

THE FinST STEA3IEOAT. ii i • i 

Avith all his talents, had a 
wonderful faculty for ruining his friends and himself. He passed 
some years in Europe, and lived to an old age after his return 
to the United States; but in i)ublic life he Avas a nullity after 
the death of Alexander Hamilton. 

12. The first steaml)oat that ever travelled was the " Perse- 
verance," built by John Fitch, a native of AVindsor, Connecticut, 
who constructed the vessel in 1787. He constructed a model 
in 1785. His vessel attained a speed of six miles an hour, oa 
the Delaware, but Avas subsequently burned. After that event 




ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 203 

the next introduction of steamboats is due to the second 
presidential term of Thomas Jetferson, and the ingenuity of 
Robert Fulton. The " Clermont " ran for many j^ears on the 
Hudson, from New York to Albany, being then the only 
sieaml)oat in the world, and the second ever constructed. The 
idea was worth more to the United States than Louisiana ten 
times repeated. 

13. The pirates of the Barbary States had levied tribute 
upon the commerce of Europe for years, and nearly all the 
maritime nations submitted to the exaction. Cruisers from 
Tripoli captured small vessels belonging to any country, and 
held their passengers and crews at ransom. The United 
States had conformed to the custom of paying tril)ute ; but, in 
1801, the year of the accession of President Jetferson, the 
Bashaw of Tripoli declared war against the United States. The 
President sent a tieet to bomljard the jNIohammedan city, and, 
after a few lessons in the arts of civilized war, the bashaw, 
completely subdued, asked humbly for peace. The disgraceful 
act of paying triljute ceased from that time. 

14. The wars of the French Revolution continued with 
varied success. Napoleon was master of the continent of 
Europe, and England was mistress of the seas.- Napoleon 
sought to destroy the commerce of England by closing all 
the ports against her, and the carrying of the world was 
largely conducted l)y the United States. In the crude con- 
dition of international law Avhich then prevailed American 
shipping suffered from both parties ; but England, being 
more powerful on the seas, injured United States com- 
merce more than France, and, besides, that country claimed 
the right of stopping any ship on the high sea to impress 
seamen of English birth into that naval service. This power 
the United States claimed was as monstrous as that exercised 
by the Bashaw of Tripoli before the bombardment of his cap- 
ital. The capture of the American frigate " Chesapeake " by 
the British frigate "Leopard," off Virginia, brought the quarrel 
close home, and Jefferson ordered all British shijis of war to 
quit the waters of the LTnited States ; but England disavowed 
the act, and, in consequence, war was not declared. An em- 
bargo laid by Congress upon all American vessels, forbidding 
them to leave port, was very injurious to commerce, and was 
removed ; but intercourse with cither of the belligerent nations 
was interdicted. The war-fever assisted to secure the election 
of James Madison towards the close of President Jefferson's 



204 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



second term, unci the Kepiiblicaiis hoped that some occasion 
would arise to wipe out okl scores. The Federalists strongly 
opposed war measures, and they were a powerful minority, 

15. Great Britain, by her agents, had been for some time 
tampering with the Indians, and the brave and wily Tecumseh 
saw his opportjmity, in 1811, to confederate the tribes in the 

north-west 
against the 
United States. 
The first great 
result of his 
powers of com- 
bination was an 
overwhelming 
defeat, at the 
hands of Gen. 
Harrison, at 
T i p p e c a n o e , 
Nov. 7, 1811. 
The attacking 
p a r t y c a m e 
upon the Amer- 
ican camp by 
night ; but they 
were crushed 
c om p 1 etely, 
with a n i m- 
mense slauofh- 




TECU ISFII 



ter. Everybody in the United States thought the hand of Eng- 
land might ])e seen in the Indian war, and the pretensions of that 
country as to the impressment of seamen continued without abate- 
ment. Sailors w^ere taken, ships were captured if any opposition 
was offered, and vessels of Avar were even sent into American 
waters to make prizes. The British sloop-of-war " Little Belt " 
was hailed by the American frigate "President," and the 
answer was made by firing. The " President " spoke the same 
tongue for a little while, until the sloop was disabled, after 
which amicable relations were estal)lislied. Finally it became 
the conviction of Americans that there could be no honorable 
peace with the English nation imtil there had l)een war, and 
President jMadison made the necessary declaration on the 19th 
of June, 1812. 

16. The invasion of Canada commenced the second war 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



205 



with England, and tlio conduct of Brig. -Gen. Hull is, Avith the 
exception of Arnold's treason, the worst record that American 
military history has presented. That officer crossed into 
Canada from Detroit, where he resided as Gov^ernor of Michi- 
gan, and issued a proclamation to the Canadians while he 
prepared to attack Fort Maiden. As soon as he learned that 
a force was preparing to attack him, he fled precipitately, and 
was subsequently followed to Detroit by Gen. Brock and an In- 
dian force under Tecumseh. The fort at Detroit was sufficiently 
strong for defence, the troops were ready and willing to fight, 
and all the material was at hand, when the poor creature raised 
the white flag, August 16, 1812, under which, without stipula- 
tion or condition of any kind, he surrendered Detroit city, 
garrison, and stores, and the whole of Michigan, to the British. 
The governor was court-martialled for cowardice, and sentenced 
to be shot ; but, in consideration of his age and services, he 
was afterwards pardoned. 

17. In the autumn of the same year another invasion of 
Canada was determined upon, and Gen. Van Rensselaer sent 
a detachment of troops across the Niagara river to carry 
Queenstown Heights. The position was : -r-^.., 

won, and Gen. Brock, the commander, -^ -.--.— ^^^ 

was among the slain. The general 

ordered the rest of his force to support 

the attacking party, but, to his intense 

disgust, the militia-men stood upon their 

State rights, and would not go beyond 

their boundaries. The men who had 

made themselves masters of the Heights 

were thus a1)andoned, and, after some 

desperate fightinii:, surrendered. "V-^^^-^^^ssb^',!!'^^'^ 

18. Willie tiie United States land il^^^^SK^ 
forces were thus belying the reputation '^-^-^^^l^j^'*'^^'^ 
won by their fathers, the " wooden walls " f^fBSi^^S:! 
of the nation were sustaining the char- -'-' --'-•^^7- 
acter for intrepidity and success which 
was earned for the navy by the prowess of Paul Jones and 
his contemporaries. The first sea-fight was between the 
American frigate " Constitution," Capt. Hull, and the " Guer- 
ricre," Capt. Dacres, August 9, 1812. The attack was made 
by the " Guerriere,"' and the commander of the "Constitution" 
manoeuvred his ship until he had secured the weather-gage, 
whereupon ho gave broadside after broadside to his enemy for 



'^ 



mvmm 



Br.OCK S MOXUMEKT. 



206 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

nearly two liouvs. The British ship surrendered Avhcn the 
vessel was so badl}^ damaged that she Av^ould not float to be 
taken into port. The eaptain of the " Constitution " Avas the 
nepheAV of tlie l)rigadicr-general that surrendered Detroit and 
Michigan only seven days later. 

19. The sloop-of-Avar "Wasp" Avas cruising off the coast 
of North Carolina, Avhen she fell in Avith the English brig 
"Frolic," October 13, and a desperate engagement ensued, in 
Avhich the defenders of the British A^essel fought nntil there 
Avas not a man left to strike the flag. The " AYasp's *' men 
boarded the enemy, and, to their surprise, they found that the 
only sailor on deck not prostrated by injuries Avas the man at 
the Avheel. There Avere some compensations for the poor 
record on land in such deeds of courage upon the sea, and 
there Avere fully three hundred prizes taken l^y American pri- 
vateers before the close of the year 1812. While these events 
Avere transpiring, tlie presidential term drcAV near its termina- 
tion, and the people signifled their endorsement of Madison's 
Avar policy by reelecting him president. 

20. There Averc three armies in the Held, and the Americans 
hoped that the proceedings of this season avouIcI redeem the 
character of the land forces from the damage suffered during: 
1812. Cien. Dearborn commanded the army of the centre, 
stationed on the Niagara river; Gen. Hampton, Avitli the army 
of the north, Avas on the shores of Lake Champlain ; and Gen. 
Harrison, Avhose name Avas already popular, connnanded the 
army of the Avest. The English entrusted the conduct of the 

Avar to Gen. Proctor, and the 
Indian allies Avere midor the 
command of Tecumseh. Two 
of the armies and their doings 
^^^^^^1 may be summed up in a fcAv 
®M'!?I^'^^= Avords. General Dearborn at- 
tacked York, noAv Toronto, and 
.>>~^^i >-^^a^;^ fmm: ^.. : ^ ,i^f tlio assault Avas being splendidly 
^'^^^^l^^&^r lod by General Pike, Avhen the 
■^'■v^u.-tJ^.^^''-^ maijazinc blew up, killing him 
Interior of Fort Missasauga at Niagara. ^^^^^ .,^ ^^.^.^^ i^ovtmn of hi;; com- 
mand. The place Avas captured, April 27, 1813. Dearborn 
Avas shortly after succeeded by General Wilkinson, Avho de- 
scended the St. LaAvrence Avith his men, to combine Avitli Gen. 
Hampton in attacking Montreal. After repulsing the British 
at Chrysler's Field, there Avas some misunderstanding between 




ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



20T 



the two Iciidcrs, and the armies septii-ated without an attempt 
on jMontreal. Hampton Avas defeated l)y the liritish, at St. 
Johns, Trovinee of C^uehee, and then nuide his way to rhittsburg, 
where he was reinforeed, and did nothing for the remainder of 
the year. 

21. Gen. Harrison, with the army of the west, made a good 
showing, and the men under his orders felt that they Avere in 
good hands. A detachment of his force on the Maumee, under 
Gen. AVinchester, left the fort to render assistance to the peo- 
ple of Frenchtown, who feared an Indian assault. The Indians 
were defeated, but before he eould reeover his position his 
men were attacked l)y an overpowering force under Proctor. 
The battle ended in a surrender ; l)ut after the battle the Eng- 
lish general, whether thoughtk'ssly or l)y design, left the 
Ameriean wounded at the mercy of the red-skins, maddened 
by whiskey and suceess. 
The result made the 
massacre at river Ilaisin 
a t(!rril »le war-cry among 
Kentuckians during the 
rest of the campaign, as 
the sulTerers were mostly 
from Kentucky. Proc- 
tor besieged Fort Meigs, 
defended by Harrison, 
but he soon found that 
the con(|ueror of Teeum- 
seh knew the art of Avar, 
although his force was 
not strong enough to 
take the field. From 
Meigs, Proctor hastened 
to Fort Stephenson, 
where the a'arrison was 
only one lumdred and o"^^« ^^^ ^^^^^ 

fifty strong, under the command of Major Croghan ; but he 
was doomed to a second repulse, and after that event he re- 
turned to Canada. Still ^lichigan was in the hands of the 
English, and Ohio Avas in danger at many points. 

22. The naval force on Lake Frie Avas assigned to the com- 
mand of Capt. Perry, a young sailor only twenty-seven years 
of age, Avho had never seen a naval engagement. iVIany of the 
ships that Avere to sail under his orders Averc yet to be con- 




208 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



structecl, and ho, must win his victory, if there was such an 
achievement in store for him, against a man who had fought 
under Lord Nelson. Commodore Barchiy bore doAvn upon 
Perry's fleet of nine vessels, carrying lifty-four guns, on the 
10th day of September, with six ships carrying sixty-three 
guns. The probabilities were all on the side of the largest ships 
and most guns ; but the yoimg commander was a hero that 
'■ did not know when he was beaten." His flag-ship, the 
''Lawrence," was attacked by two of the heaviest ships of 
the British, as well in number of guns and men as in size, 
and he continued to fight until there were only eight men 
left fit for action. When the last gun had been fired on 
l)oard the "Lawrence," he carried his flag to the "Niagara," 
passing in a small boat through the British fleet. Hoisting 
his flag on the "Niagara," he broke the enemy's line, delivering 
]3otli broadsides as rapidly as his men could load and fire, and 
1)efore our forces knew what the next movement might be. Perry 
was master of the situation. The despatch sent by Perry to 
Gen. Harrison "fl^as as good in its way as the brief announcement 
by Ctesar : Veni, vidi.-vici. Perry said, "We have met the 

All over the United States those 



enemy, and they are ours." 
words were repeated. 



23. The despatch from Perry 
found his colleague. General 
Harrison, preparing for a de- 
scent on Canada, where Proctor 
and his Lidians, under Tecum- 
seh, fully two thousand strong, 
g occupied INIalden, designing to 
lay waste the American frontier. 
The general hurried to Maiden 



at once ; l)utthe English had fled, 
and he followed rapidly in pur- 
suit. His course from Sandusky 
bay had only prepared him for 
his Avork. Our forces were overtaken on the Thames, and, 
their dispositions being already made, the battle commenced 
without delay. Col. Johnson, with his horsemen from Kentucky, 
full of remembrance^ of the Raisin massacre, charged through 
the English line and formed innnediately in the rear to resume 
operations. Proctor made his escape, and the army sur- 
rendered. The Indians were attacked with special energy, and 
Tecumseh fell mortally wounded. That incident was in itself 




rEKRY'S MONUMENT. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES, 209 

a defeat for the reel men, and tliey fled in every direction, Avith- 
out striking another blow. This victory, following so rapidly 
upon the Lake Erie exploit, ended the war in this section of 
the country, and the two commanders were spoken of, in the 
United States everyiv'here, as the men who were alone worthy 
to command the armies and navy of the Union. 

24. Capt. Lawrence, of the frigate "Chesapeake," was in 
Boston harbor refitting his vessel, and was, it is claimed, in no 
sense ready for action, when he received a challenge from 
Capt. Brock, of the " Shannon," then lying off the harbor, to 
come out and fight him. Half his men had been discharged, 
and the remainder were unpaid, and all but mutinous, so that 
he could not properly prepare his ship, even if she had been 
thoroughly refitted. Still his error was heroic, and the out- 
come might have been different had not a hand grenade burst 
in the arm-chest of the ship at the very moment that the " Shan- 
non's " men boarded her. The slaughter was terrific ; but Avhen 
Capt. Lawrence fell, mortally wounded, the last hope of victory 
was gone. The crew was feeble and disheartengd, and the last 
words of their commander, "Don't give up the ship," fell upon 
the ears of the men who were already beaten. 

25. Tecumseh induced the Alabama Lidians to join in his 
league in 1811, and in 1813 Fort Minis was surprised, the 
garrison slaughtered, and the women reserved for worse tor- 
tures than they suffered in seeing their children slain and 
mangled. The facts of that piece of treachery and horror 
brought avengers from every quarter, and under Jackson the 
Indians were pursued from one point to another, until they 
made a stand on Horseshoe Bend, in a fortified position. The 
Apjierican troops scaled their Avorks regardless of obstacles, and 
carried the day at the point of the bayonet. The Creek In- 
dians kncAV that they were fighting for life, and they did all 
they could to repulse their assailants. Six hundred fell, and 
the poor remainder made their surrender on such terms as a 
dog would have disdained. The tribe Avill long remember the 
battle of March 27, 1814. 

26. The British navy seemed to have learned hoAv to make 
war among the foUoAvers of Tecumseh, for the AA^hole of the 
southern coast AA^as raA\aged by parties of sailors and marines 
landed from Admiral Cockburn's squadron. Bridges were de- 
stroyed, villages burned, crops devastated, and other such acts 
of savage war were carried out along the seaboard of Virginia 
and the Carolinas. In the following year similar tactics were 



210 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



observed on the coast of the northern States. Commerce was 
annihilated ; towns in Maine and Connecticut were captured or 
bombarded, and on the 24th of August, 1813, Gen. Ross 
marched into Washington, where he burned libraries and pub- 
lic records, private dwellings and stores, and consummated 
successes by destroying the capitol. From that point he made 
his way, by the sea, to Baltimore, where, on the 12th of Sep- 
tember, 1813, the forces were disembarked to cooperate with 
the fleet in another act of spoliation. Fort McHenry was 
allotted to the licet ; but the attempted bombardment produced 
no effect, and the troops met with so much resistance on 
land that the men who had been under Gen. Ross' orders 
retired to the ships, and the erasure of Baltimore was post- 
poned. Gen. Ross was killed while reconnoitring on this ex- 
pedition. 

27. Canada was attacked once more, in 1814; the army 
under Gen. Brown crossing the Niagara river. Fort Erie was 
captured ; the victory at Chippewa was won by Gen. Winfield 
Scott on the 5tli cf July, and, twenty clays later, the bloody 

-x . battle of Lundy's 

Lane was fought to 
a brilliant finish by 
the Americans. 
The day was clos- 
ing in, when Scott 
gave Col. Miller 
instructions to car- 
ry the key of the 
British position, — a 
battery on a height. 
The colonel headed 
his regiment, and 
was soon master of 
the battery ; but 
the British knew its 
value as well as he : 
three times they 
concentrated their 
force upon its re- 
capture, and as many times they were driven back in dismay 
by the well-organized defence, until about midnight they re- 
tired from the contest, leaving victory with the enemy. 

28. Plattsburg was almost entirely deprived of troops ; there 




MILLER AT LUNDY S LANE. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 211 

were on\y one thousand five hunclrccl in the place on the 11th 
of September ; the rest had been sent to Canada to serve under 
General Brown, when General Prevost, with twelve thousand 
men, who had gone through the peninsular wars with the Duke 
of Wellington, attacked the town. The British fleet on the 
lake was to render essential aid in demolishing the place, and 
there was only one obstacle to success, — a squadron of American 
vessels under the command of Commodore McDonough. Still 
there was an obstacle sutficient for the purpose by land and by 
lake. The one thousand five hundred soldiers defended the 
passage of the Saranac against nearly as many thousand veterans, 
and the fleet upon which Prevost depended was all but de- 
stroyed. The battle of Lake Champlain has a place in history, 
but we do not care to sing its praise. The British commodore 
lost his ships, and the general fled with his army, leaving sick, 
wounded, and military stores. 

29. The last engagement in this war was fought after peace 
had been concluded between England and America. Napoleon, 
who had been compelled to abdicate the throne of France and 
retire to Elba, was speedily to leave his splendid prison and 
reappear in France. England had probably an inkling of what 
would happen, if she was not really in the secret from its in- 
ception, and for that reason she wanted peace on this side of 
the Atlantic ; hence the haste with which peace was concluded, 
in the latter part of December, at Ghent, to prepare for the 
bloodier theatre of war. Unaware that they were already 
friends wath the United States, General Pakenham's command 
of twelve thousand men and a powerful fleet advanced to the 
attack on New Orleans. General Jackson had thrown up en- 
trenchments some miles below the city, and the assailants were 
met by a destructive fire ; but they moved steadily through the 
hail-storm of death. Solid columns opposed to the riflemen of 
Kentucky and Tennessee Avere bound to sufl'er, and the soldiers 
that had been invincible so long wavered now. Pakenham fell 
dead as he was heartening his troops, and his successor, Lam- 
bert, continued the battle until nightfall ; but the defeat of the 
attacking party was as thorough as the attack was found to 
have been unnecessary. The British lost two thousand men in 
the encounter, and the defenders only a dozen killed and 
wounded. 

30. The treaty subscribed at Ghent did not contain an ex- 
press abandonment of the British claim as to impressment, but 
there was a tacit understanding that it would never be again 



212 HISTORY OF DOMIXION OF CAXADA, 

put forward ; and that concession may have justified the war, 
although the cost to the country amounted to one hundred and 
twenty-seven million dollars. The nation had not spent blood 
and treasure in vain ; the powers of her people had been proved 
by land and sea, and the world had been taught that it is not 
easy for any force to conquer and retain possession of the United 
States. While the war lasted there had been an enforced pro- 
tection of American manufactures, as European shipments had 
been cut off by the blockade, and when the terrible visitation 
came to an end the home-made article could hold its own against 
all honest competition. The resources of the people had not 
been in any sense permanently impaired, although trade, com- 
merce, and specie were strangers in the land ; for within twenty 
years the war debt had been entirely cancelled, and the nation 
was on its way to a wonderful prosperity. The naval pre- 
eminence of the United States showed that the old Norse blood 
had not degenerated among the hardy mariners that live upon 
the American coast. While the war continued, the Algerines 
took advantage of the trouble to renew their depredations in 
the Mediterranean, and, as soon as the immediate business on 
hand Avas completed, a fleet, under Admiral Decatur, proceeded 
to Tunis, Tripoli, and Algiers to remonstrate with great guns. 
The pirates liberated every prisoner, made ample indemnity for 
all losses, and gave good pledges for the future. There was 
yet another consequence of the war. The Federalists, once 
strong in the affections of the people, were routed because they 
would have taken peace at any priced and when Madison's 
second term came toward its end, another Republican, James 
Monroe, was chosen almost by acclamation. 

31. The Missouri compromise was an evidence of growth, 
as there was a time when no such question as the admission or 
non-admission of a slave State to the Union would have arisen ; 
but in the year 1820, when it was first proposed that Missouri 
should be admitted, public opinion was already so strong on the 
subject that nothing short of the promise contained in Henry 
Clay's compromise, that the limits of slavery were irrevocably 
fixed, could have satisfied the nation, or procured the admission 
of Missouri in 1821. Social progress was manifested under the 
administration of Monroe by the wondrous recuperative power 
exhibited by the country just emerging from a peculiarly dis- 
astrous war. Internal development, manufactures, steamboat 
enterprise, and a tendency to expand over the whole continent, 
spoke of a nation that already felt its destiny as one of the 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 213 

greatest that is designed to help the progress of humanity. The 
era of inventive genius which had dawned upon the country, 
before the colonies became a nation, was now advancing toward 
the brightness of perfect day. 

32. Spain had never much honor nor any profit from the 
possession of Florida since the days of Ponce De Leon, and 
since the settlement of Georgia there had occurred many op- 
portunities for defending the fort of St. Augustine at consider- 
able expense. In the year 1819 negotiations were commenced 
with Spain for the purchase of Florida, and in 1821 the treaty 
was made under which, in the following year, the territory was 
organized under the constitution. The announcement by the 
president, in a message to Congress, that an attempt by any 
European nation to obtain a new foothold on this continent 
would be considered by the United States as an unfriendly act, 
deserves special mention, as the Monroe doctrine, whether 
avowed or not, will continue to be the policy of the United 
States ; and the gradual absorption of the possessions of France 
and Spain shows that similar views had been entertained for 
many years by previous statesmen. The purchase of Louisiana 
was effected during the time that Mr. Monroe was minister at 
the court of Napoleon. 

33. The Marquis De La Fayette, who visited the United 
States in the day of its peril, and stayed until that danger had 
been surmounted, went as a guest in 1824, and made a more 
than royal progress, through the States, welcomed everywhere. 
The thirteen States, for which he fought at Brandy wine, and 
throughout the war until the surrender at Yorktown, had grown 
into twenty-four States, and he also had changed from the 3'oung 
noble, mil of generous enthusiasm, to the matured statesman, 
who had sounded the depths of human existence. He had as- 
sisted liberty in his native land until it became license, and then 
endangered his own life by arresting the dangerous excess. He 
had dared the anger of ro^-alty while it was strong, and gener- 
ously sustained it when tottering to its fall. He had fought the 
battles of the people, and been compelled to quit his country 
for conscience' sake when his emigration cost him a prolonged 
and unjust imprisonment. His term of usefulness had not even 
then been reached, as he was to assist in exchanging the Bour- 
bon proper on the throne of France for the Orleans branch in 
the citizen king, and in every act of his life to testify the pres- 
ence of a conscience void of offence, and a heart full of generous 
emotions. The marquis was worthy to be the guest of a nation. 



214 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

34. The Republican party, which had cast down and de- 
stroyed the Federahsts, was gradually being broken into its 
constituent parts. The ties of party were loosening, and a new 
combination, to become known as the Whigs, was being erected 
in opposition to the other wing of the old party, thereafter 
known as the Democrats. John Quincy Adams and Henry 
Clay, favoring protection and internal improvements, repre- 
sented the Whig element, and the first-named of the leaders, 
son of President Adams, was chosen as the. successor to Presi- 
dent Monroe. 

35. President Adams had not a majority of the electoral 
votes, nor had any one of the candidates, and the House of 
Representatives gave him the position ; hence there was no 
strong party in his favor ; and when his name was put forward 
as a candidate for reelection, he, like his father, was doomed to 
sufier a defeat. The protective policy championed by him was 
peculiarly objectionable to the Southern States, and Gen. Jack- 
son, the defender of New Orleans, besides being the nominee 
of the Democrats, was popular, because of his services, among 
all classes. The east upheld the protective tarifi", but it could 
not sustain John Quincy Adams against such a combination as 
was arrayed for Jackso^. The first railroad in the United 
States, and the Erie Canal, date from this term. The war debt 
was rapidly diminishing, and there was a surplus in the treas- 
ury. Public works had been undertaken to an extent never 
before dreamed of, and at every step the nation was becoming 
wealthier, because of the wise expenditure of its means. "The 
old man eloquent " was not to pass ofi" the stage of public life. 

36. Rotation in oflice v/as the first innovation due to the 
peculiar constitution of Andrew Jackson's mind. Washington 
had surrounded himself with men diflering in views, because it 
was his desire to combine the nation. Jackson was resolved to 
govern, and he would have his own friends and supporters 
around him, not only in his cabinet, but in subordinate offices. 
Without descending to changes among clerks, there were about 
seven hundred removals within the first year, — ten times as many 
as had been made before since the constitution was adopted. 
In the third year of Jackson's rule, 1832, South Carolina nulli- 
fied the tarifi", threatening secession if force was used to collect 
duties under it at Charleston. The president sent troops to 
the spot immediately, and proclaimed his resolve to execute the 
laws. Henry Clay's " Compromise Bill " being carried, was the 
occasion for the pacification of South Carolina. Clay, on this 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



215 



measure being objected to by his friends, as a bar to his ever 
winning the presidency, said : " I would rather be right than 
president." 

37. Jackson refused to renew the charter of the bank, and 




JDaasX Webatet Hcary Clay. 

CLAY AQERESSIHG COilCRESS. 



Jo}>a.C>Calluiali» 



on that basis was reelected ; so that he assumed to have tested 
the will of the people upon that question, and thereupon the 
public money was drawn from that institution. Much suffering 
ensued, as the bank called in its loans, and a collapse immedi- 
ately resulted. But, during the crisis, Jackson Avas strongly 
upheld by the Democratic majority in the House ; and when the 
local banks were aided by the funds being lodged with them, 
accommodation became more easy than ever before. Specu- 
lation grew rife ; building-lots for imaginary cities rose to a 
value nnprecedentcd in the history of the country until then, 
and the irridescent bubble attracted all eyes for some years. 

38. Black Hawk was in his policy the successor of Te- 
cumseh, with this difference, that he was under treaty obliga- 
tions to the United States. The Sac and Fox Indians sold their 
lands to the government, and their reserved rights were re- 
spected ; but Black Hawk, mistaking consideration for weak- 
ness, organized a plot, in 1832, to recover the territory. The 
war was vigorously prosecuted, the Indians defeated, Black 



216 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

Ilawk deposed from his authority, and still more territory pur- 
chased for settlement. The Indians in Florida were peculiarly 
intractable and fierce, and before settlement could be attempted 
on a large scale, their absence was necessary. Under a treaty 
made with the chief after the purchase from Spain, the tribe 
was to be removed to lands west of the Mississippi ; but at the 
last moment Osceola defied the United States. The chief was 
taken prisoner, and then consented to carry out the treaty : but 
as soon as he was free he organized a general massacre, and 
succeeded in slaughtering some hundreds. After much fight- 
ing, the Seminoles retreated to the everglades of Southern 
Florida, but were defeated in the tangled swamps by Col. 
Zachary Taylor, in the battle of Ockechobee, December 25, 
1837. Osceola, seized under a flag of truce, died in Fort 
Moultrie, in 1838, but the war did not come to an end finally 
until 1842. 

39. The injuries inflicted upon American ships and property 
during the Napoleonic wars by France were to have been paid 
for to the extent of five million dollars, but the Bourbon gov- 
ernment broke the {igreement. The president proposed a 
system of reprisals, but England, acting as mediator, prevented 
hostilities, and the debt was paid. The vigor .of such action 
pleased the people, and iMartin Van Buren, a Democrat, was 
elected to follow Jackson, thus indorsing his policy. Gen. 
Harrison, personally popular, was defeated. 

50. Consequent upon the action of Gen. Jackson the local 
banks had promoted speculation, and just when Martin Van 
Buren l)ecamc president there was a great crisis. The demand 
for payments in gold and silver for i)ublic lands was the imme- 
diate cause ; but such an event must have come. The banks 
contracted their circulation ; business men foiled for enormous 
sums ; properties fell to a tithe of assumed values ; the general 
government could not meet its obligations for a time, and eight 
States failed. There was a complete panic, and trade was 
almost entirely at an end. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 217 



CHAPTEE XIX. 

ENGLAND FROM 1780 TO 1840. 

GEORGE III. — GEORGE IV. — WILLIAM IV. — CORONATION OP QUEEN VICTORIA. 

1. While England was losing colonics by the revolution in 
America, she was gaining an empire in the East. " Tlie fomi- 
clation of the great power of the English in India had been laid 
bj ^'to victories of Clive, Sir Eyre Coote, Major ]\Iunro, and 
0^ . :nders ; by arbitrary exactions ; by treaties made 
\\ .1. princes greatly to the advantage of the Company, 
a' I' I V ,i;Limidation and conquest when these treaties were 

In all these transactions there existed no small 
f that injustice and oppression which the strong are 
L J to exercise towards the weak. At various times the 

.'^ te of Indian aflairs was discussed in Parhanicnt, and bills 
'/. jught in to restrain the East India Company, especially in 
i'lG acquisition of territory, and in the exercise of legislative 
.tud executive power. In the year 1773 a bill was passed in 
j'arliamcnt, by which a court of justice was estabhshed in 
Bengal, consisting of judges .appointed by the crown. The 
same bill also provided for the appointment of a governor- 
general of India, with four counsellors, to be nominated in the 
lirst instance by Parliament, but at the end of five j^ears by the 
Court of Directors of the East India Company, su1)ject, how- 
ever, to the approbation of the crown. Under this act there 
Avas appointed for India a ruler whose character and achieve- 
ments were as remarkable as those of Clive, and who, like 
him, devoted all his energies to maintain and increase English 
supremacy in the East. This was Warren Hastings. He 
claimed descent from the Danish Viking of that name, who, in 
Alfred's time, had ravaged England." Hastings went to Eng- 
land as a clerk in the Company's employ, and rose by his 
energy and talent to become governor-general. 

2. The exalted position which Hastings finally attained was 
one of great clifBculty and temptation. He sought to maintain 
the supremacy of England against the French and the natives, 
and at the same time serve the best interests of the Company. 
The Company, at a distance of fifteen thousand miles, were 



218 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA,' 

poorly qualified to judge of matters in India ; and they urged 
the paradoxical claim upon their governor of large profits and 
kind treatment of the natives. Hastings could not render 
both ; and, as he was forced to disobedience in odc particular, 
he chose the latter. This led him into acts of cruelty and in- 
justice. He seized two provinces belonging to the Great JMogul, 
and sold them for a large sum to the Nabob of Oude. After 
this he sold the services of the British troops to enable some 
nabob to conquer a brave, free, and happy people in the valley 
of Rohilcund. Subsequently, however, Hastings perpetrated, 
in the eyes of Hindoos, a far greater crime. On the banks of 
the Ganges stands the city of Benares, as sacred in the estimation 
of Brahmin worshippers as is Jerusalem to the most loyal Jew, 
or Mecca to the followers of Mohannned. "Its splendid tem- 
ples, its jewelled shrines, its graceful minarets, the flights of 
marble steps leading down to the sacred stream, the conse- 
crated bulls and apes which thronged the streets or clang to 
the temples, were objects of time-honored veneration through- 
out India. Besides the costly oflerings of religion, commerce 
had enriched this favorpd city. ' In its bazaar the muslins of 
Bengal and the sabres of Oude were mingled with the jewels 
of Golconda and the shawls of Cashmere.' Warren Hastings 
was in need of money. His was the hand by which might 
made right, and, in defiance of the horror which such a deed 
awakened, he plundered the holy city of Benares in 1781. 
Whilst these transactions were going on in Bengal, the atten- 
tion of the governor-general was suddenly demanded in 
another quarter. Hyder-Ali, the famous Mohammedan chief- 
tain of Mysore, had burst upon the jDlains of the Carnatic. 
With an army of ninety thousand men, and the powerful co- 
operation of the French, he threatened to drive the English 
from Southern India. Hastings raised an army, gave it in 
command of the veueral)le old soldier. Sir Eyre Coote, who 
drove back the bold invader, and restored to the English the 
presidency of Madras. This war had drained the governor- 
general's treasury, and the wealth gained by the plunder of 
Benares was not sufiicient to replenish it. To obtain, there- 
fore, another supply, he robbed two Indian princesses, the 
mother and grandmother of the Nabob of Oude. These aged 
women were imprisoned in their palace until, half famished, 
they consented to give their rapacious jailer one million two 
hundred thousand [)ounds. By such means did Warren Hast- 
ings obtain the large revenue requisite to carry on the expenses 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 219 

of his Indian government. In February, 1785, tlie governor- 
general resigned his office and embarked for England. 

3. Three years later Warren Hastings stood l^efore the 
High Court of Parliament, in Westminster Hall, and listened 
to his impeachment by Edmund Burke, one of the most brilliant 
orators England ever produced. Never, in the annals of Eng- 
lish history, has there been a trial of so high and intense interest 
as that of Warren Hastings. The galleries contained Gibbon, 
the historian, Sir Joshua Reynolds, the painter, Gainsborough, 
and Dr. Parr; also Mrs. Siddons, the celebrated actress. The 
trial was managed by such men as Burke, Sheridan, and Fox, 
whose eloquence will never be surpassed. The trial was con- 
tinued through every session for seven years ; and in April, 1795, 
the prisoner was found "not guilty." But before this trial was 
ended the ministry of George HI. became absorbed with the 
aflairs of France. The French people of that country, rendered 
impatient and wretched by oppression, rose in ojDposition to their 
rulers. They elected a National Assembly, and declared war 
against royalty and nobility, and, after many acts of violence, 
their monarch and his ciueen were beheaded. This brouglit 
forth England's protest, both as against this rash deed and the 
introduction of republicanism. In 1793 the French National 
Convention declared war against Great Britain. Then com- 
menced the long contest of the French revolution, which con- 
tinued, with the exception of a short peace, for more than 
twenty years. England won all of her victories on the sea, 
while France, especially after the rise of Napoleon Bonaparte, 
continued mistress of the continent. 

4. In 1797 England had internal difficulties of no mean 
importance to contend with. A mutiny extended throughout 
the whole navy, which greatly impaired the naval service ; yet, 
notwithstanding, reforms in the navy put a stop to the muti- 
neers, and, as in no other war during her whole history, England 
won the most brilliant victories on the seas. In an attack upon 
the Spanish fleet, olf Cape St. Vincent, by Admiral Jarvis, Lord 
Nelson distinguished himself by acts of great valor, and in the 
succeeding year, 1798, all England blazed with illuminations 
and resounded with artillery, in honor of another triumph won 
by Lord Nelson at the battle of the Nile. In this year Napoleon 
Bonaparte, then at the head of the armies of France, invaded 
Egypt, hoping by the conquest of that country to strike a fatal 
blow at the English possessions in India. Lord Nelson, who 
had been ordered to the Mediterranean, learned of the course 



220 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

Napoleon's fleet had taken, and started in pursuit. On the 
morning of the 1st of August the two fleets came in contact in 
the harbor of Alexandria. When Nelson first beheld the French 
ships, he exclaimed, " Before this time to-morrow, I shall have 
gained a peerage, or Westminster Abbey." The French fleet, 
forming a curved line, occupied a strong position in Aboukir 
Bay. Nelson determined to send a part of his squadron between 
the enemy and the shore, and to attack with the rest on the 
other side, thus placing the French between two fires. On 
communicating this design to one of his captains, the latter ex- 
claimed : "If we succeed, what will the world say?" — "There 
is no ' if in the case," replied Nelson. "That we shall succeed 
is certain ; wdio may live to tell the story is a very diflereut 
question." The engagement began at three o'clock in the after- 
noon, and lasted until midnight. At night the blaze of two 
thousand pieces of artiller}^ illuminated the scene, "and the 
volumes of flame and smoke that rolled aw^ay from the bay 
gave it the appearance of a terrific volcano suddenly bursting 
forth in the midst of the sea." By nine o'clock three French 
ships had struck their colors, two -were dismasted, and flames 
were fast enveloping a third, "L'Orient," although she still 
made a brave defence. , 

5. On the burning deck of the " L'Orient " stood the youth- 
ful, l)ut brave Casablanca. He was the son of the French 
admiral, and only ten j^ears of age. With heroic firmness he 
refused to quit his post, even when the guns had been aban- 
doned, and 

*' The flames that lit the battle's wreck 
Shone round Mm o'er the dead. " 

A few moments more, and those flames had reached the powder 
magazine. Then followed the fearful destruction of the 
" L'Orient " and her gallant crew, — 



"With mast, and helm, and pennon fair, 
That well had borne their part ; 
But the noblest thing that perished there 
Was that young, faithful heart." 

At the conclusion of the battle, at midnight, the entire French 
fleet was destroyed, with the exception of four vessels, which 
escaped to carry the news of their defeat to France. Nelson 
was severely wounded in the action ; but he was rewarded by 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 221 

a handsome pension and the title of "Baron Xelson of the 
Nile." 

6. In the same year the volunteer system of militia was 
established in England, which was no small proof of the reliance 
placed by the king and ministry on the people. One hundred 
and tift;^ thousand were enrolled, who rendered good service in 
quelling domestic disturbances. Napoleon's invasion of Egjq^t, 
before referred to, caused Turkey — as Egypt was then a prov- 
ince of that empire — to declare war against France. A few 
months later Napoleon formed the bold design of crossing the 
desert to Syria, where the principal army of the Sultan was 
situated. He hoped to conquer this army and to found a grand 
empire in the East. Stimulated by their bold leader the French 
army entered the Holy Land, passed over the plains of Gahlee, 
the heights of Carmel, Nazareth, Cana, and laid siege to Acre. 
"It was defended by the Turks, and in the Bay of Carmel lay a 
small English fleet, commanded by Sir Sydney Smith. This 
trying siege continued from the 16th of March to the 7th of 
May, 1799. On the evening of the latter day an Ottoman fleet 
of thirty sail, with stores of ammunition and artillery, anchored 
in the bay. Napoleon at once ordered an assault, hoping to 
take the town before relief could be thrown into it. This 
assault, renewed for three days, was made with all the energy 
of despair. It was unavailing, and at last there fell from Napo- 
leon's lips the first order for retreat which that successful gen- 
eral had ever uttered. He left on the Syrian plains three 
thousand of his brave men; there, too, lay buried his glorious 
visions of oriental empire. With heavy hearts the remnant of 
his army retraced their march to Egypt, through the burning 
sands of the desert." Of Sir Sidney Smith, Napoleon often 
said, "That man made me miss my destiny." 

7. During this prolonged Avar Ireland became a source of 
great trouble to England. That country, ever since its con- 
quest by Henry Plantagenet, had been a source of difficulty to 
England ; and it was, in a great measure, the unjust and cruel 
conduct of the conqueror that made Ireland discontented. On 
every fresh conquest the fair domains of Ireland were wi'ested 
from the native owner, and bestowed upon a foreign lord. The 
new proprietor, instead of dwelling on his estate, caring for his 
tenantry, and becoming Irish in his spiipathies and interests, 
returned to England, leaving an agent to collect rents and 
raise as much money as he could from the estate. These 
agents oppressed the peasantry, and thus awakened a feeling 



222 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

of hostility towards the absent proprietor. Then, too, there 
lingered in the land a great numljer of the old, disinherited 
families, who kept up in the minds of their former dependants 
a feelino; of indio-nation against the Saxon invaders." At the 
time of the Reformation England became Protestant, but Ire- 
land still adhered to the Church of Rome. Hence another 
source of embroilment. The " Society of United Irishmen," on 
the one hand, and the "Orangemen" on the other, formed two 
powerful opposing elements ; the former adverse to English and 
Protestant supremacy, and the latter in favor of both. The 
French, enemies of England, did much to foster this discontent ; 
but in 1799 Ireland and England were brought under one 
Parliament. The measure met with violent opposition on the 
part of the great body of the Irish people. Curran and Grat- 
tan, the most eloquent orators of their day, pleaded earnestly 
against it, as subversive of the dignity and liberty of their 
country. The bill for the union, which had passed in the Eng- 
lish Parliament, was agreed to in the Irish House of Lords, and 
the Commons were won over by bri])ery. Thus, in the last 
year of the eighteenth century, the union of England and Ire- 
land was effected. The Irish Parliament ceased to exist, and 
twenty-eight peers and que hundred commoners represent that 
kinordom in the national council of the realm. Henceforth the 
British Isles assumed the title of " The United Kingdom of 
Great Britain and Ireland." 

8. In 1801 the governments of Russia, Sweden, and Den- 
mark, instigated by France, entered into a confederacy hostile 
to England. This Avas called the " Armed Neutrality," and 
caused England to send a fleet to the Baltic. The fleet was 
commanded by Admiral Sir Hyde Parker and Lord Nelson. 
The advance was made on Copenhagen, and on the morning of 
I\Iarch 30, eighteen English ships of the line and a number of 
smaller vessels, entered the narrow sound which divides Den- 
mark and Sweden. On the 1st of April Lord Nelson with 
only twelve line-of-battle ships anchored within two miles of 
Copenhagen. Sir Hyde Parker remained with the remainder 
of the fleet at the entrance of the sound. At ten o'clock of the 
2d of April the battle began. At one o'clock three of the 
best English ships grounded on the shoals, and Admiral Parker 
signalled a retreat. Nelson was in the thickest of the fight 
when the signal was reported, but, instead of obeying it, he re- 
marked to one of his captains, "You know I have only one 
eye ; I have a right to be blind sometimes." Then putting the 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 223 

glass to his blind eye, he added, " I really don't see the signal. 
Keep mine for closer battle still flying ! " Such Avas the per- 
sistent bravery of Nelson, Avhicli won the battle of Copenhagen, 
and of which he afterwards remarked, "I have been in above 
a hundred engagements, but that of Copenhagen was the most 
terrible of them all." This, and the death of the Emperor of 
Kussia, and the accession of a new czar, Alexander I., who 
immediately entered into friendly relations with Great Britain, 
put an end to the "Armed Neutrality." In 1802 a treaty of 
peace was signed between France and England ; but this made 
only a brief pause in the din of war. In 1803 war reopened 
with all its horrors, and raged until the great Napoleon was 
defeated at Waterloo. I have space to mention only the prin- 
cipal features of this war. In the plan to conquer Egypt 
France was thwarted. In May, 1804, Napoleon was declared 
Emperor of the French ; and during the following year car- 
ried on a successful campaign in Northern Italy and Austria. 
On the surrender of the old Austrian town of Uhn, by Gen. 
Mack, on the 20tli of October, 1805, Napoleon gazed upon an 
array of sixty thousand prisoners of war as they defiled before 
him. He exclaimed, " I must have greater things than these — 
ships, colonies, commerce ! These are what I want ! " The mor- 
row's sun shone down upon the battle of Trafalgar, by which 
these much-coveted advantages were confirmed to his enemies, 
and the hope of their acquisition was forever crushed in the 
mind of Napoleon. The battle of Trafalgar, gained by Lord 
Nelson, on the morning of the 21st of October, 1805, will be 
ever memorable in the annals of Great Britain's naval history ; 
memorable for the bravery with which an English fleet of 
twenty-seven sail overcame the combined squadron of France 
and Spain ; and not less memorable for the death of the gallant 
Lord Nelson, who fell in the moment of victory. On going 
into the action Nelson modestly said to his men ; " England 
expects every man to do his duty ; " and the men responded 
with such rapturous enthusiasm as has never been equalled in 
the history of nations. The heroism of the men who fought at 
Trafalgar, and the bravery of their noble leader, have no equal 
in all the annals of naval warfare. 

9. In 1808 Napoleon had reached the height of bis power. All 
continental Europe was prostrated at his imperial feet. He had 
seized the thrones of Holland and Naples for two of his brothers, 
Louis and Joseph, and for the third had created Westphalia 
into a kingdom ; and his fourth stroke was to transfer Joseph 



224 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

Bonaparte to the throne of Spain, and bestow the consequent 
vacant crown upon his brave general, Murat. This attempt 
brought on the mighty peninsular war, and gave oi)portuuity 
for those deeds of wonderful valor by which Sir Arthur 
Wellesley (soon afterwards Duke of Welliifgton) immortalized 
himself and adorned English history. He was at first sent out 
with ten thousand troops. At Vimeira, hi Portugal, he gained 
a victory over the French. Subsequently the English entered 
into an agreement with the French, by which the latter aban- 
doned Portugal. Afterwards Sir John JMoorc was appointed 
to the command of His Majesty's forces in the peninsula. He 
advanced into Spain ; but Napoleon had entered that country 
with two hundred thousand men, defeated the Spaniards in 
several engagements, taken Madrid, and was now, with fifty 
thousand troops, in pursuit of the English. Sir John Moore 
was forced to retreat. Napoleon was called to France, but 
Marshal Soule assumed command in his absence, and continued 
the march upon the English, who were now retreating. " When, 
on the 11th of January, 1809, the army of Sir John Moore gazed 
from the heights of Corunna upon the sea, and saw not a single 
transport in the harbor, they knew their only hope lay in suc- 
cessful battle with the pursuing foe. That battle, fought on 
the IGth, in the face of overwhelming numbers, was won, but 
with the sacrifice of their brave commander. Sir John Moore 
perished upon the field of victory. The enemy were repulsed, 
but there was no time to be lost in the embarkation of the 
troops on board the transports, which two days before had 
anchored in the harbor. Hastily, and in silence, a grave was 
dug on the ramparts of Corunna, in which was laid the body of 
the departed general." All my readers will remember how 
the burial of Sir John Moore is described by the poet. We 
have often repeated with a peculiar inspiration : — 

" Not a drum -was heard, not a funeral note, 
As his corse to the ramparts we hurried ; 
Not a soldier discharged his farewell shot 
O'er the grave where our hero we huried." 

The generals of Napoleon made themselves masters of Spain 
during the first years of the peninsula war, but in 1800 Wel- 
lington was appointed to the English command in that quarter, 
and soon the tide of victory followed the march of his army. 
His victories were won under the most trying circumstances ; 
but his reward came at last. In 1813 the French fled from 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 225 

Spain, of which they had made themselves masters. On the 
21st of June was fought the great battle of Vittoria, in which 
Wellington gaine'd a series of brilliant victories, driving the 
French before his invincible troops, even on French territory. 

10. In 1812 the great Napoleon, thinking the conquest of 
Spain secure, set out with five hundred thousand men to invade 
Russia. This expedition resulted in the burning of Moscow, 
to prevent its being occupied by the French ; l)ut the reader is 
probably aware of the disastrous retreat and destruction of 
Napoleon's hosts. Of those who follovred the bokl leader 
across the Niemen but twenty thousand recrossecl it in return. 
The storm of defeat now gathered thick and black about the 
throne of France. From Lisbon to the V\'hite Sea all Europe 
rose against the imperial eagles. A million of Napoleon's 
soldiers had perished in eighteen months. In 1811 he abdicated 
before the consuming power of his enemies, and tied to the 
island of Elba; but in 1815 he returned to France, and so 
powerful was his presence that he drew around him one hundred 
and twenty thousand men. With this force he suddenly en- 
tered Belgium. His intention was to interpose between the 
English under Wellington, and their Prussian allies under 
Blucher ; to defeat the latter, and then to meet Wellington, with 
whom he longed to measure his strength. When the intelli- 
gence of this move reached Wellington he calmly ordered his 
troops to prepare, and then went to the Duchess of Richmond's 
ball. This incident is made familiar in Byron's " Childe Harold." 
True, indeed, — 

" There was a soiintl of revelry by night, 
And Belgium's capital had gathered there 
Her beauty and her chivalry." 

In June two battles were fought. The Prussians were defeated,, 
and the English were compelled to retreat, to secure a junc- 
tion with the Prussians under Blucher. Communication was 
had between the latter and Wellington, who was promised 
assistance as soon as he could pass the difficult roads with his 
troops. 

11. On opposite hills, overlooking the plain of Waterloo, 
the French and English armies rested on the night of the 17th 
of June. The rain fell in torrents, and the dreadful hours 
were spent on the wet ground. On the morning of the 18tli of 
June, 1815, the French, amid peals of martial music, took their 
position. The English, with less show, made no less careful 



226 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

preparations. When Napoleon beheld his foes ho haughtily 
remarked, "I have them, these English!" Marshal 8oult 
intelligently replied, '' Sire, I know these English ; they will 
die on the ground on which they stand before they lose it ! " I 
will gratify my readers with a description of this battle from an 
abler pen, that of A. B. Berard : '' As the clock from a neigh- 
boring village struck eleven, the first gun was fired from the 
French lines, aiid the action commenced by their attack on an 
old chateau, where was posted a body of English light troops. 
By a fierce assault the wood surrounding the chateau was 
carried, but the house held out, an invincible citadel, until con- 
sumed by the fire from the French howitzers. Even then the 
brave foot-guards maintained the garden and court-yard, and 
turned the storm of battle from that quarter. It then burst in 
full force upon the British left, to be not only repelled, but re- 
turned by such a brilliant charge of cavalry from the Scotch 
Greys as to extort admiration from Napoleon himself. 'Those 
terrible Greys, how they fight ! ' he exclaimed, when he beheld 
his column of five thousand strong scattered by their charge, 
two thousand prisoners taken, and eighty pieces of cannon 
rendered useless. Picton, the brave leader who repelled the 
French onset, and Ponspnby, who led the charge, both fell in 
the moment of their brilliant success. And now the massive 
colunms of the French turned upon the British centre. There 
Wellington commanded, and Napoleon animated the attack. 
For four hours it was the scene of the intrepid charge of the 
French cavahy, and the heroic resistance and repulse of the 
British infantry. Thus the !)attle raged long past the hour of 
noon, and the Prussians, under their brave old marshal, had 
not yet come up. They had begun their march hy daybreak; 
but the route lay through forest roads, made deep and miry by 
rivulets which had become torrents, and interspersed by deep 
pools. The gun-carriages often sank axle-deep in mud, and 
the exhausted and almost despairing soldiers would exclaim : 
' We shall never get on.' — ' But we must get on,' urged Blucher ; 
'I have given my word to Wellington, and you will not make 
me break it. Courage, children, courage, for a few hours 
longer, and then victory will be ours.' It was past four o'clock 
in the afternoon when they reached the scene of action. But 
when the fire of their artillery rang upon the ear, Napoleon felt 
that the last decisive moment was fast approaching. One more 
hope remained. It remained in the old Imperial Guard, — 
those brave veterans of the empire, than whonr there were on 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 227 



earth no braver. But even they were powerless to win back 
the fatal day of Waterloo ; and as the sun went down there 
rose the despairing cry : ' All is lost ; the Guard recoils ! ' Its 
departing rays beheld the flight of the last columns of the 
imperial army. AVaterloo was lost, and Napoleon, attended 
by a few followers, tied from the battle-field. He returned to 
Paris, aiid thence endeavored to escape to America, but the 
shores of France were watched by Euglish cruisers. Disap- 
pointed in this hope, he surrendered himself into the hands of 
the captain of an English vessel in the harbor of liochfort, — 

" 'And trusting to his noblest foes, 
"When earth was all too gray for chivalry, 
Died of their mercies 'mid the desert sea.' 

The allies entered Paris : the old line of French kings was 
restored, and the terrible struggle of the French Ptcvolution 
was ended." 

12. While England was conducting these wars she was also 
engaged in the wa"r of 1812-15, as we have already seen. Her 
many defeats in the latter must be explained by the l)itter 
struggles of the former. At the same time the Barbary 
pirates had ravaged the Mediterranean, and were the terror of 
every sail. In"l816 the British sent Lord Exmouth to the 
coast of Barl)ary to demand reparation. "Tunis and Tripoli 
acceded to these' demands, but Algiers hesitated, on the ground 
that, being a sul^ject of Turkey, she could enter into no treaty 
without the consent of that government. An embassy was sent 
to the sultan, but before any answer could be returned the 
Algerines conmiitted so gross an outrage on the flag of Great 
Britain that the British government determined to destroy this 
stronghold of piracy. A fleet, commanded by Lord Exmouth, 
was sent to Algiers. The city, built upon a hillside which 
rises from the sea, presented an imposing and formidable 
appearance. It Avas well defended with fortiflcations, batteries, 
and gunboats. On the 27tli of August Lord Exmouth entered 
tlie harbor, and sent to the Dey a flag, with the demands of the 
British government. An answer was promised in the course of 
tAvo hoiirs ; but, as none came at the appointed time. Lord 
Exmouth opened a Are upon the town. At four o'clock, P.M., 
the British flred some Algerinc ships in the harbor; the flames 
spread to the arsenals and stores on the shore, and when, on 
the following morning, the Doy sent in his submission, his cap- 



228 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

ital presented a melancholy appearance. A treaty was entered 
into, by which three thousand and three captives Avere liberated, 
and the abolition of Christian slavery was promised by the 
government of Algiers." 

13. At the close of the first month of 1820, George III. 
died, in the eighty-second year of his age, and the sixtieth year 
of his reign. For nearly ten 3'ears insanity had rendered him 
unfit to administer the government, and since 1811 a regency 
had conducted the affliirs of state, having the Prince of Wales 
at its head. The prince-regent now ascended the throne, and 
was crowned George IV., King of Great Britain and Ireland. 
He had been married, in 1795, to the Princess Caroline of 
Brunswick; but the union was an unhappy one, and in 1814 
the queen went to reside on the continent. Eflbrts, emanating 
partly from George IV., were put forth to induce her to remain 
abroad, and renounce the style and title of Queen of Great 
Britain ; but these were in vain. She returned, and the case 
was brought before Parliament ; but before it was settled, in 
1821, she died. The domestic history of England during this 
period "^vas characterized by Roman Catholic emancipation, 
parliamentary reforms, and the aljolition of slavery in the 
colonies. After a reign of about ten years, George IV. died, 
and was succeeded b^^ his brother, AVilliam Henry, Duke of 
Clarence. He was crowned with the title of William IV. The 
latter reigned until June 20, 1837, when he died and Avas suc- 
ceeded l)v Alexandria Victoria, the daughter of his brother, the 
Duke of Kent. 8he is the present reigning sovereign. In a 
subsequent chapter on England during the nineteenth century, 
the aft'airs under the three last-named rulers Avill be revicAved. 
MeanAvhile, let us return to the inner circles of Canadian 
history. 



CHAPTER XX. 

THE PROVINCE OF CANADA, 1840 TO 1867. 

THE EARL OF DURHAM LORD SYDENHAM — SIR CHARLES BAGOT — THE UNION. 

1. In a preA^ious chapter aa'c have folloAA'cd the history of 
Canada down to the union of 1840, passing by events in the 
other provinces of the present Dominion, for purposes of con- 
venience, to Avhich Ave shall turn our attention in succeeding 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 229 

chapters. Let us now trace the fortunes of United Canada, or 
the Provmce of Canada, as it was called by the terms of the 
Union in 1840, from the time of the union to the confederation 
of 1867. Reserving all special subjects, such as education, 
comiuerce, public works, etc., for separate chapters, later on, 
we will now follow onl}^ the political thread of our narrative, 
excepting only to mention that notwithstanding the many internal 
disturbances which shook the two provinces in their separate 
capacities, time and money were found for considerable public 
improvements. In Lower Canada large sums of money were 
voted by the Legislature for the building of the Chambly and 
Lachinc canals, and the same province voted to take one hun- 
dred thousand dollars of stock in the Welland Canal of Upper 
Canada. In the latter province, the WcHand Canal was pushed 
forward with great energy. It was projected l)y the Hon. Wil- 
liam H. Mcrritt, a son of a united empire loyalist. He served 
in the war of 1812, and six years later entered upon the work 
of this important canal. He was a member of the Legislature 
for many years ; was president of the executive council of 
Upper Canada in 1849, and chief commissioner of public works 
in 1851. 

2. In 1838 affairs in Canada had attracted so much attention 
in England, that the Earl of Durham was appointed governor- 
general and her majesty's lord high commissioner, to inquire 
into and report upon the affairs of the rebellion. The Right 
Honorable John George Lambton, Earl of Durham, was born 
in 1792. In 1813 he was elected to Parliament, and in 1838 
he came to Canada on the mission stated. His report upon the 
political state of the provinces was published in 1839, and led 
to the union which immediately followed. Shortly after his 
arrival Lord Duriiani and the several eminent men Avho accom- 
panied him set about the objects of their mission. Valuable 
information was collected, witnesses examined, and inquiries 
instituted with great vigor. A voluminous report on the state 
of the country was prepared as the result of these inquiries, 
and laid before her majesty. Among other recommendations 
made by the earl, the union of the two Canadas was urged as 
of paramount importance. A hostile censure, in the House of 
Lords, on Lord Durham's local administration of the govern- 
ment, however, lirought his mission to an abrupt termination, 
and he returned to England. Sir John Colboi-ne (afterwards 
Lord Seaton) again became administrator of the government 
in Lower Canada until the aj^pointment of the Right Honorable 



230 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

Charles Poulett Thompson (afterwards Lord Sydenham) as 
governor-general . 

3. On the return of peace to the provinces, in 1839, the 
British government at once adopted measures to maintain the 
permanent tranquillity of the country. The Right Honorable 
C. P. Thompson (Lord Sydenham), an eminent merchant, 
was sent out as governor-general, lie was born in England, 
in 1799, and was elected to Parliament in 182G. His record 
may be briefly summed np thus : He was vice-president of the 
Board of Trade in 1829 ; president in 1834. He established 
the English schools of design in 1837 ; appointed Governor- 
General of Canada in 1839 ; united the Canadas, and was 
created Baron Sydenham at Toronto, in 18-10 ; opened the 
first united Parliament at Kingst;)n, in June, 1841 ; projected 
a municipal system in Upper Canada in August; and died, by 
reason of a fall from his horse, and was buried in Kingston, in 
September, 1841 , aged only fort^'-two years. '' He was directed 
to ol)tain the concurrence of the inhabitants to a union of the 
provinces. The special council of Lower Canada agreed to the 
proposed union (and the assumption by the united province of 
the large dobt of Upper Canada), after a conference with the 
governor-general, in IS'^ovember, LS39. The Legislature of 
Upper Canada also agreed to it, after two weeks' debate, in 
December of the same year. Lord Sydenham relieved Sir John 
Colborne in Lower Canada, on his arrival there, 19th October, 
and Sir George Arthur, in Upper Canada, on the 22d of Novem- 
ber, 1839. The act of union, so readily agreed to l)y both 
provinces, was drafted by Lord Sydenham, and sent home. It 
was passed by the British Parliament in 1840, and took effect 
by royal proclamation (issued by Lord Sydenham) on the 10th 
of February, 1841 , — a threefold anniversary, already memorable 
in the history of Canada, viz. : first, by the Treaty of Utrecht, 
b}' which the province was, in 1 763, ceded to the British Crown ; 
secondhjy hy the assent of the sovereign to the Imperial Act of 
1838, by which the constitution of Lower Canada was suspend- 
ed ; and, thirdli/, by the marriage of our most gracious sover- 
eign the Queen to His Iloyal Highness Prince xVlbert of Saxe 
Coburg and Gotha, in 1839." 

4. The new constitution of the Province of Canada, as set 
forth in the Imperial Act of Union, embodied several features 
not heretofore introduced into colonial constitutions. "The 
most important of these features was, firsf, the institution of 
responsible government, that is, a government controlled by 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 231 

colonial ministers of the crown, having seats in the Legislature, 
and rcsponsil>le to it for tlieir olticial acts, and for their advice 
to the governor-general ; and, secondhj, the concession to the 
House of Asseinbly of complete control over the revenue in all 
its branches, and the supervison of the entire expenditure of 
the country. Thus were the demands of one great party grant- 
ed ; while, to meet the views of the other party, guards and 
checks were then interposed, which, since that time, have been 
gradually relaxed. The j'car 1841 was an eventful one for 
Canada. In that year the double system of lieutenant-gov- 
ernors and legislators ceased ; and Lord Sydenham became 
sole representative of the cpieen in Canada. The elections to 
the new Legislature took place in March ; and the tirst united 
Parliament of the province was opened with imposing cere- 
monies, at Kingston, Upper Canada, in June, 18-11. During 
that memorable session the foundation of many of our important 
civil institutions was laid, especially those relating to the munic- 
ipal system, popular education, the customs, currency, etc. 
Another valuable measure was passed relating to the manage- 
ment of the public works of the province, which had hitherto 
been constructed, either by private irresponsible companies, or 
by contracts issued by separate departments of the government. 
At Lord Sj'dcnham's suggestion the numerous acts relating to 
public improvements were consolidated, and a Board of Public 
Works, with a cabinet minister at its head, created." In order 
to enable this Board to carry on to completion some newly pro- 
jected public works, and to consolidate the debt already in- 
curred for them, one million live hundred thousand pounds 
sterling was, upon the governor-general's recommendation, 
raised in England on the credit of the province. The session 
was terminated l>y the sudden death of the governor-general. 

5. The "Clergy Eeserves" constituted one of the most diffi- 
cult question for the new government to solve. Under the 
previous constitution a vast portion of the lands in both prov- 
inces were set aside for the beneiit of the Church of England. 
It was resolved to dispose of these lands, and divide the pro- 
ceeds anions: the several reliii"ious denominations. A bill was 
accordingly introduced by j\Ir. Draper, now solicitor-general, 
early in .lanuaiy, empowering the governor to sell these re- 
serves ; part of the proceeds to be applied for payment of the 
salaries of the existini; clerorvmon of the Church of Ensrland, to 
whom the faith of the crown had been pledged. One-half of 
the remainder was to <2ro to the churches of England and Scot- 



232 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



land, in proportion to their respective numbers ; the other half, 
to all other denominations of Christians recognized by the ex- 
isting laws, in a ratio to their annual private contributions for 
the support of their ministers. This bill passed the Assembly 
by a majority of eight. The measure, however, did not satisfy 
the reform party, and the clergy-reserve question continued 
to be a fruitful source of agitation. 

G. Next, and still more important, was the question of re- 
sponsil)le government. The method l)y which it was introduced 
was gradual, and illustrative of the slow degrees hy which the 
executi\'o in a monarchical form of government yields to the 
voice of the people. An address had been prepared by the 
Assemljly to the governor-general, in order to elicit a distinct 
expression of his views on this question. On the 14th of Jan- 
uary, 1840, he sent down a message in reply, which declared 
"that he had been commanded by her majesty to administer 
the government in accordance with the well-understood wishes 
of the people ; and to pay to their feelings, as expressed 
through their representatives, the deference that was justly 

due to them." Thus, at 
last, was the principle of 
responsible government 
interwoven with the con- 
stitution of Canada, a con- 
summation so long strug- 
gled for by the reform 
party. The governor-gen- 
eral's message on this head 
was followed by the re- 
moval of j\Ir. Ilagerman, 
the attorney-general, who 
had voted against the union 
in the Assembly. Mr. 
Draper was appointed to 
the vacant post, Avhile 
Robert Baldwin, the prin- 
cipal leader of the con- 
stitutional reformers, was 
made solicitor-general. The Hon. Robert Baldwin, C.B., 
was born in Toronto, in 1804. For a long period he was a 
prominent leader of the lil)cral ])arty in Upper Canada. He 
was first elected to the Legislature in 1829, and l)ecame an 
executive counsellor in 183G. He was appointed solicitor- 




ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 233 

o-encral in 1840, and attorney-general and joint-premier of 
Canada in 1842, holding the latter position again in 1848, and 
in 1854 he was created by the qneen a civil commander of 
the Bath, for distinguished public services. 

7. AV'ith the return of peace came a renewal of prosperity. 
Immigration set in, and once more the flow of population to 
the western section of the province was seen to inspire the 
hopes for the future. Mv. Thompson, the governor-general, 
gave very good satisfaction both to the people of Canada and 
to the home government, and the queen w^as pleased to raise 
him to the peerage, with the title of Baron Sydenham of Kent 
and of Toronto. A n6w Parliament was convened at Kingston, 
then capital of the recently united Canada, on the 13th of 
June, 1841. "The Assembly chose Mr. Cuvillier, a French- 
Canadian reformer, as their speaker. The session was opened 
by the governor-general in a clever and practical speech, alike 
distinguished for its moderation and good sense. It recom- 
mended a new arrangement of the post-office department, the 
completion of the public works of the province, for which pur- 
pose Great Britain was prepared to pledge her credit for 
one million live hundred thousand pounds sterling, the encour- 
ao-oment of innniii'ration on an extended scale, the creation of 
municipal councils, and a better provision for education. It 
also stated that a large sum would l^e annuall}' expcndexl l^y the 
home government for the military defences of the country, 
and declared the fixed determination of the queen to main- 
tain, at all hazards, the existing British provinces of North 
America as part of the empire. It concluded with a praj'er 
that Providence might so direct their councils as to ensure 
to the queen attached and loyal subjects, and to United Canada 
a prosperous and happy people. 13ut the fiery political ordeal 
through which Canada had so recently passed rendered the 
wisdom and moderation of Lord Sydenham unavailing in at 
once removing every trace of dissension. lie had I o contend 
against lingering Tory prejudice, on one hand, and extreme 
reform expectation, on the other, looking at once for sweeping 
ultra measures." 

8. Governor-General Thompson was succeeded by Sir 
Charles Bagot, in January, 1842. He arrived at Kingston, the 
capital, in January, and was favorably received l)y the inhabi- 
tants. The government, since the death of his predecessor, had 
been administered by Sir Richard Jackson, the connnander of 
the forces. Sir Charles was descended from an ancient family. 



234 



HISTORY OF DOMIXION OP CANADA, 




SIR L. n. LAFOXTAIXE. 



He was a, high churchman and a Tory. lie disappointed nearly 
all Canadian politicians, who expected him to favor only the 
Tories. On the contrary he determined to use "whatever l)arty 
he found capal)lo of supporting a ministry, and accordingly 
made proposals to the French Canadians, who had fallen into a 
minority in the government. In this way ho opened the door 

to political distinction to both 
French and English. Of course 
the new governor-generars 
policy caused some consider- 
a])le changes in the composition 
of the nlinistr3^ Mr. Draper re- 
signed the attorney-generalship 
for Oanada AYest ; Mr. Henry 
Sherwo(xI, solicitor-general for 
the same province, made way 
for Mr. A}dwin. Mr. Hincks 
was made inspector-general of 
pul^lic accounts ; JNIr. Lafon- 
taine became attorney-general 
for Canada East, Mr. Fakhvin, 
for Canada "West, and Mr. 
Morin, commissioner for crown lands. The new ministry had a 
decided^najority. " The new inspector-general, Francis llincks, 
and who now appeared prominently before the public for the 

first time, was unquestionably a 
man of no ordinary stamp. His 
father, the Rev. Dr. Hincks, 
was a distinguished minister of 
the Irish Presl)yterian Church, 
and whose live -sons appear to 
have all inherited his great abili- 
ties. His youngest son, Francis, 
Avas born at Cork, a])out 1806, 
commenced his ' education at 
Fermoy, in his father's gram- 
mar school, and eventually com- 
pleted it in the classical and 
mathematical department of the 
Belfast institution. After four 
months' initiation into business 
matters, in the otBce of a notary, he was articled for five years 
to a mercantile firm, with whom he duly fulfilled his term in 




SIR FRANCIS HINCKS. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 235 

1828. But he still remained in jNIartin & Co.'s employment, 
continued to retain their eonlidence, and sailed as the supereargo 
of one of their ships to the West Indies in the spring of 1830. 
In the same year he visited the United States and Canada, and 
determined to settle in the latter country. In 1832 he married, 
removed to 'I oroiito, and commenced mercantile business, in 
which he did not meet with much success. His tinancial 
abilities, however, soon brought him into notice, and he was 
appointed secretary to an insurance company, cashier to a new 
banking concern, and was chosen, in 1835, to examine into the 
affairs of the A\'elland Canal Company, then in no small dis- 
order. In the spring of 1838 he commenced the "Examiner" 
newspaper at Toronto, in the reform interest, and speedily be- 
came so distinguished as a public journalist that he was invited 
to become a candidate for the representation of the county of 
Oxford, in the new Union Parliament. He Avas returned by a 
majority of thirty-one over Carroll, his opponent; and, after his 
appointment as inspector-general, was again elected for the 
same constituency ])y a much larger vote." The governor-gen- 
eral had many ditiicultics to contend with. During his admin- 
istration the tires of political strife were frequently rekindled. 
He acted amidst all with great prudence, and called to his 
councils the chiefs of the reform party. His health having 
failed, he resigned his office, and Avas about to return to Eng- 
land, when he died at Kingston, in May, 1843. 



CHAPTER XXI. 

THE PROVINCE OF CANADA, 1840 TO ISG7 — (continued). 

ABMIXISTRATIOXS OF LORD METCALF, EARL CATHCART, AXD LORD ELGIX. 

1. In 1843 Sir Charles jNIetcalf, Avho had distinguished 
himself as governor in India and in plamaica, succeeded Sir 
Charles Pagot. On the 28th of Septeml)er, 1843, he opened 
the Legislature at Kingston in a speech which Avas favorably re- 
ceived. He i'avored the conservative party, of Avhich Sir Allan 
M'Xab w^as noAV the acknowledged leader. " Some official ap- 
pointments from the ranks of that party led to an open ru})ture 
Avith the ministry in November, and they accordingly tendered 
their resignations. In this condition matters remained till after 



23G 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 




the termination of the session, on the 0th of December ; when 
the jjovernor-ofeneral, while he dccUired that he recoo-nized the 
just 2^0 wer and privileges of the people to influence their 

rulers, and to regulate, 
through their representa- 
tives, the administration 
of government, maintained 
he had the right to select 
the executive officers of 
the crown. lie accord- 
ingly BOW received the res- 
ignations of the ministry, 
and sought to form a pro- 
visional, or irresponsible, 
cabinet for the present. 
Even this he soon found to 
be a most difficult task, as 
in the present composition 
of the IIouso of Asseml)ly 
all the conservative lead- 
ers w^erc miAvilling to take 
office. Finally, on the loth, his provisional government was 
formed, and was composed of Messtiger, Dal}^ and Draper, the 
latter now a member of the ii})per house. But his conduct 
created much political excitement, and was vigorously de- 
nounced l)y the reform press, as well as by the leadei-s of 
the reform part}'. The determination having ])ecu come to, 
during the recent session of the Legislature ( 1844) , to remove 
the scat of government to JMontreal, that event according!}^ took 
place after the opening of navigation. Monklands was fitted 
up as the residence of the governor-general, and ho removed 
thither in the month of eTune. After consideral)lo difficulty, a 
ministr}', under the leadership of Mr. Draper, was at length 
formed, of a conservative complexion, to suit 8ir Charles Met- 
calf, and it Avas determined to resort to a dissolution of Parlia- 
ment, and appeal to the people, for the support of which there 
was not the most remote chance as the Assembly was then con- 
stituted. Writs were accordingly issued for a new election on 
the 24th of September, and made returnable on the 10th of 
Noveml)er following. The election resulted in the return of a 
small conservative majority. On the 28th of November the 
Legislature was convened at Montreal, when Sir Allan M'Nab 
was cliosQu speaker of the Assembly by a majority of three 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 237 

votes. The speech of the governor-general was very moderate 
in its tone, and chietly distinguished for its alhisions to the con- 
tinual improvement in the finances of the country, and in its 
affairs otherwise. The debate on the address was a very warm 
one; but the opposition, led by Mr. Baldwin, was finally de- 
feated, on a motion to amend it, by a conservative majority of 
six." About this period the governor-general was raised to the 
peerage, by the title of Baron jMetcalf, in consideration of his 
long and meritorious services. 

2. The year 1845 was rendered memorable by two very 
disastrous fires in Quebec, which took place respectively in 
jNIay and June. Several lives were lost, and the dwellings of 
about twenty-four thousand people destroyed, and many of the 
sufferers were reduced to utter distress. To relieve the wants 
of these unfortunate people one hundred thousand pounds ster- 
ling were raised in Great Britain by contribution, and over 
thirty-five thousand pounds were collected by the people of 
Canada. Temporary dwellings were erected, and before 
winter came on the city began to rise from its ruins. Lord 
Metcalf's policy was very unsatisfactory to the reform party, 
and, in the fall of 1845, he retired from the governorship, 
l)ein2f afflicted with a cancer on his risht cheek, from which he 
died soon after. Upon his resignation, Lieutenant-General 
Earl Cathcart, commanding the forces in Canada, was appointed 
administrator of the government. He did not mix in the dis- 
putes between the rival political parties, but left them to settle 
their quarrels among themselves. His administration, lasting 
until the middle of January, 1847, was characterized by an 
agitation with regard to the payment of losses caused by de- 
struction of property in Lower Canada during the rebellion. 

3. On the 1st of October, 1847, the Earl of Elgin, the 
successor of Lord Metcalf, received his appointment. He Avas 
a p(n-son of high educational appointments. Ho arrived at 
Montreal in January, 1847, and was received with the usual 
demonstrations. Politics were running high, but in the midst 
of all came the cry for help from Ireland and the Scottish 
Highlands, where a fearful famine was raging. The Canadian 
people were not wanting in charity. A " relief fund " was 
opened, and from every direction — " from old-fashioned 
tories and modern radicals, from conservatives and reformers, 
from the Iroquois Indians of Caughnawaga, and the Hurons 
and Delawares of Western Canada, and from her colored citi- 
zens — came contributions in monev or in food. On the 2d of 



238 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

June the Legislature convened at jNIontreal, and the session 
opened by Lord Elgin in a short, practical, and clever non- 
connnittal speech. He stated that the ini[)erial government was 
prepared to surrender to the colonial authorities the control of 
the post-ofBcc department ; and that the house was now em- 
powered, by imperial statute, to repeal the differential duties 
in favor of British manufactures. He alluded to the necessity 
of providing increased warehouse facilities at inland ports ; to 
the imperial survey of the intended railroad from Quebec to 
Halifax ; to the proposed alteration with respect to the British 
copyright question ; and to the measures which had been 
adopted to provide for the large immigration expected to take 
place to this country." 

4. The immigration thus alluded to had already commenced, 
and was throwing a large number of destitute persons upon 
the charity of the citizens and the himianity of the authorities. 
Army after army of sick and sutFering people, fleeing from 
famine in their native land to be stricken down by death in the 
valley of the St. Lawrence, stopped in rapid succession at 
Gross Isle, and there leaving numbers of their dead behind, 
pushed upwards towards the lakes in overcrowded steamers, to 
burden the inhabitants of the western towns and villages. Up 
to the 7th of August seventy thousand immigrants had landed 
at Quebec. The session of the Legislature terminated on the 
28th of Julv, after the transaction of a laro-c amount of busi- 
ness, one hundred and ten acts having been passed. The min- 
istry still continued to hold office, though defeated on some 
important measures ; and it was evident they could scarcely 
hope to carry on the government much longer. The leaders 
of the reformers saw clearly they would hardly dare to meet 
another session of the Legislature with a " no coniidence vote " 
staring them in the face, and warned their party to be ready 
for a new election, now evidently near at hand. Reform con- 
ventions were accordingly held in every direction, candidates 
decided upon, newspapers started in their interest, and every 
measure taken necessary to success. In this active state of 
preparation did the reform party meet the dissolution of Par- 
liament on the 6th of December, 1848. The writs for the 
election w^ere made returnable on the 24th of the following 
January. From the general tone of the public mind it was 
confidently expected by reformers that the conservatives 
would be overthrown, and the expectation Avas not in error. All 
the principal reform leaders were returned, among whom were 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 239 

Hiiicks, Baldwin, Price, Blake, Cameron, Nelson, and Papineau. 
Messrs. Baldwin and Lafontaine were called upon to form a 
ministry, which they accomplished with but little ditHculty. 
Mr. Hincks became inspector-general, Mr. Cameron, assistant- 
commissioner for public works, and ^Ir. Blake became solicitor- 
general for Canada Vv'cst. The new cabinet was composed 
of eight members of British origin and four of French. The 
latter were ^lessrs. Lafontaine, Caron, Viger, 'J ache. This 
was one of the ablest cabinets that ever directed Canadian 
atiairs ; ^' and measures of the greatest importance to the 
country, relative to the finances, post-otfice, education, and 
public improvements, Avere passed by the Legislature. One 
measure, however, produced a sudden ebullition of party 
violence, which for a time disturbed the general harmony, and 
brought disgrace upon the province. In 1845 a former minis- 
try, under Lord Cathcart's administration, had issued a com- 
mission to incpiirc into the losses sustained during the rebel- 
hoji by individuals, either through military necessity or from 
lawlessness, in 1837-8. Their report was but partially acted 
upon at the time ; l)ut so great was the pressure brought to 
bear upon the government by parties who had suffered these 
losses that, in 1840, the matter came up before the governor 
in council, and subsequently before the Legislature, for final 
settlement. The measure proposed being thought too indis- 
criminate and liberal by the party in opposition to the govern- 
ment, warm discussions took place in the house, and an agita- 
tion on the subject commenced throughout the countrj'. The 
measure, however, passed both houses, and was assented to by 
Lord Elgin, in the queen's name. No sooner had he done so 
than he was assailed in the streets of Montreal (the seat of gov- 
ernment having been in that city since 1844), and, as a crown- 
ing act of violence, the Houses of Parliament were set fire to, 
and thev, with their most valuable library, were almost 
totally destroyed. Besides the irreparable loss of the library 
and of the pul)lic records, a fatal injury was inflicted upon the 
good name and credit of the country, and popular violence for 
a time triumphed." 

5. The seat of government was at once removed to Toronto, 
and Lord Elgin tendered his resignation, and the queen de- 
cided to accept it, and raised him a step in the peerage. At 
length peace was restored to the country, and Lord Elgin 
stood acquitted before the people. A free banking-law was 
passed in 1850, and in the following year a uniform postage 



240 



HISTORY OF DOMIXION OF CANADA, 




rate was adopted, and in the same year the corner-stone of 
the Toronto Normal School was laid by the governor-general. 

Indeed, Lord Elgin was 
the friend of popuhir edu- 
cation in the provinces. 
He did much to promote 
the success of the system 
of public instruction, 
founded by the liev. Dr. 
Egerton Kyerson. The 
eftbrts of Dr. llyerson, in 
behalf of the educational 
progress of his country, 
cannot be too highly 
praised. Before retiring 
from his post Lord Elgin 
procured the passage of 
the Reciprocity Treaty 
with the United States, 
— which was abrogated 
by that country in 1866. 
It was also durins; his administration that the Grand Trunk and 
Great Western Railways were commenced. Sir Allan M'Nab 
and Sir Francis Hincks were the chief projectors of these lines. 
"At the Great International Exhibition, which was held in 
London in 1851, Canada made a most ftivorable impression on 
the British public, both by the variety and extent of the samples 
which were there shown of her valuable natural resources, and 
by the mechanical skill and enterprise which were apparent in 
the manufactured goods which were sent by the province to 
that exhibition." 

6. In 1851 the prosperity of Canada was becoming more 
and more apparent, and began to attract considerable attention 
from other countries.^ With the United States a largo inter- 
national tratHc had sprung up ; and Canadian imports and ex- 
ports, passing in bond over the Ncnv York and New England 
railways, formed an important item of their business. This 
close communitv of interests led to the interchano-e of mutual 
national civilities. In the month of September Boston distin- 
guished itself by giving a grand fete to many of the principal 
Canadian merchants and public men, at which Lord Elgin was 



'MacMullen's History of Canada. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 241 

present, and made a most happy speech, tending to augment the 
mutual good feeling engendered by the occasion, as well as by 
the more enduring bond of identity of interests. But these 
occurrences, however satisflictory in themselves, did not dimin- 
ish the dissensions within the reform party. However, the 
lapse of time had gradually assuaged the bitter asperities en- 
gendered by events which arose out of the rebellion, and the 
public mind in 1852 exhibited a desire to turn aside from 
exciting political topics, and apply itself instead to questions 
of social and physical progress. Hitherto Canada had lagged 
far behind the United States in many respects ; and English 
and other tourists not infrequently made most unfavorable com- 
ments on the backward condition of public improvements in 
this countr}'. But a visible change for the better was now 
rapidly taking place. An act favorable to the formation of 
joint-stock companies had already given a great impetus to the 
construction of plank and macadamized roads, and in many 
other ways the industrial resources of the country were now 
being developed. The cause of education, as regarded the 
masses, had also been materially advanced by improvements in 
the common-school law, and the introduction of a uniform sys- 
tem of text-books ; while an excellent normal school at Toronto 
afforded the requisite facilities for the training of competent 
teachers for Upper Canada. The public mind of the country 
was evidently becoming eminently utilitarian, and readily ap- 
plied itself to the development of railway projects of various 
kinds, as well as to the consideration of the best methods to 
promote more intimate reciprocal commercial relations with the 
United States. In the earlier part of the year Mr. Hincks 
had gone to England to push forAvard the scheme of a Grand 
Trunk Railway, the precise location of which continued to 
be a source of the most fruitful contention, owing to conflicting 
interests. From the discussion of these matters, the public, in 
the month of July, turned aside to regard the catastrophe of a 
terrible tire in Montreal, which laid a large part of that city 
waste, and rendered ten thousand people homeless. Great ex- 
ertions were made to relieve the sufferers. The seat of gov- 
ernment had now been removed to Quebec; and there, 
accordingly, the new Parliament assembled on the 16th of 
August, 1852, and chose Mr. John Sandtield Macdonald as 
speaker of the lower house. The governor-general's open- 
ing speech alluded to the necessity of a change in the seigno- 
rial tenure system, the expediency of having a line of steamers 



24:2 HISTORY OF DOMINION. OF CANADA, 

to sail from Canada to England, the advisability of an altera- 
tion in the currency, so as to permit of accounts being kept in 
dollars and cents, and the propriety of increasing the parlia- 
mentary representation, — measures which were all subsequently 
adopted. During the session Mr. Ilincks introduced a series 
of resolutions relative to the settlement of the clergy-reserves 
question, which passed; and declared, at the same time, that 
he felt confident the home government would shortly bring a 
bill into the Imperial Parliament, permitting the Canadian 
Legislature to dispose finally of a matter which had been such 
a source of prolonged agitation. The house, also, unanimously 
agreed to an address, requesting the imperial authorities to 
make no concession to the American government in the matter 
of the fishery dispute, unless in connection with the concession 
of reciprocity. Mr. Hincks exhibited a desire to retaliate on 
the United States for not conceding more intimate commercial 
relations, by adopting differential duties in favor of British 
commerce, and by shutting the Canadian canals to American 
shipping. The public voice, however, was at once raised 
against a narrow and suicidal policy of this kind, and the 
ministry had to abandon it altogether. But the great feature 
of this session was its large amount of railway legislation, and 
which placed no less than fifteen bills on the statute book. 
Among these the act relating to the incorporation of the Grand 
Trunk Railway was the most important. By its twenty-eighth 
section the bonds of this company received the provincial 
guaranty to the extent of three thousand pounds sterling per 
mile. The same section further set forth, that for every one 
hundred thousand pounds actually expended on this railway by 
the company, forty thousand pounds should be guaranteed by 
the province. By this act a sum exceeding sixteen million 
dollars was in a few years added to the permanent liabili- 
ties of the country ; and, in 1866, the total debt of the Grand 
Trunk Railway to the government, principal and interest, had 
swelled to the enormous sum of twenty-three million dollars. 

7. Mr. Hincks was the chief motive power in the financial 
schemes of the country of this period, and this wonderful Grand 
Trunk enterprise was by no means sufficient to satisfy his am- 
bition. He caused the passage of an act to establish a con- 
solidated municipal loan fund for Upper Canada. " This fund," 
savs MacMullen, " was to be under the manas-ement of the 
provincial government, and designed to enable municipalities 
to borrow money on the credit of the province for the construe- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 243 

tion of railways, macadamized roads, bridges, and other public 
works. Availing themselves of the provisions of this act, several 
municipalities rashly incurred liabilities which they were uttex'ly 
unable to meet, and much unwise speculation was indulged in. 
Subsequently, in 1854, it was found necessary to amend this act, 
to extend its provisions to Lower Canada, and to limit the 
' fund ' to one million five hundred thousand pounds sterling 
for each province. The full amount of the loan was soon 
absorbed by Upper Canada, but the lower province acted more 
prudently. Yet the entire public debt contracted in this way 
speedily reached the sum of about nine million five hun- 
dred thousand dollars ; and as most of the borrowing 
municipalities were utterly unable to pay the interest, the 
greater portion of it had to be met from the public exchequer, 
while Parliament was subsequently obliged to pass measures 
for their relief. Most of the works constructed were, however, 
of great benefit to the community, and aided in no small degree 
to develop its resources. It will thus be seen that the legislation 
of 1852 laid the foundation of a large addition to the liabilities 
of this country, and paved the way for the annual deficit which 
subsequently existed in the provincial revenue for so many 
years. At the close of 1852 the whole debt of Canada, direct 
and indirect, was twenty-t^vo million three hundred and fifty- 
five thousand four hundred and thirteen dollars ; the net revenue 
for the year amounted to three million nine hundred and seventy- 
six thousand seven hundred and six dollars ; while the expen- 
diture was only three million fifty-nine thousand and eighty-one 
dollars. This prosperous state of the finances placed the credit 
of the country on the soundest basis ; and Canadian government 
securities, bearing six per cent, interest, were now quoted at a 
premium of sixteen per cent, in the English money market." 

8. In 1853 the appearance in Canada of the Italian priest 
Gavazzi, who had been converted to Protestantism, attracted 
considerable attention. As a lecturer he was driven from Que- 
bec, and he proceeded to Montreal, where his lectures were the 
cause of still greater rioting, which terminated in a sad loss of 
life. While lecturinij in the Zion Congregational Church an 
immense mob, chiefly composed of the lower orders of the city 
population, assailed the building, in the face of a strong force 
of police and military. The greatest confusion prevailed, and 
the dispersing congregation were fired into, probably by mis- 
take, and some five persons were killed outright and many 
wounded. The mayor of the city, Mr. Charles Wilson, under 



244 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

whom the police acted, was a Roman Catholic, and was greatly 
blamed for this proceeding. This circumstance served greatly 
to weaken the Hincks' administration, and added considerably to 
the popularity of Mr. George Brown, an extreme Protestant, who 
at this time was strongly opposing Mr. Hincks in Parliament. 
But towards the end of the year 1853 the latter gentleman and 
his associates in the cabinet fell suddenly in public estimation, 
by charges of corruption. The charges against ]Mr. Hincks 
were serious. " A suit in the Court of Chancery, in which Mr. 
Bowes, the ]\Iayor of Toronto, was the defendant, developed 
the fact that he and Mr. Hincks had purchased fifty thousand 
pounds' worth of the debentures of that city, at a discount of 
twenty per cent., and that the premier had a bill subsequently 
passed in Parliament, which raised the value of these securities 
to par. Other charges of improper conduct, in connection with 
the purchase of some public lands at Point Levi, opposite 
Quebec, and elsewhere, and designed to be resold to railway 
corporations, were also made against Mr. Hincks and other 
members of the government, and had an additional damaging 
effect on its reputation. We may here state that in 1855 a 
parliamentary committee was appointed to inquire into the truth 
of these charges, which exposed a condition of things not 
at all flattering to the morality of the Hincks administi-ation, 
and further developed the corrupting tendency of railway spec- 
ulations." This and the intense opposition of Mr. Brown 
overthrew the Hincks party in the following year. Personally, 
however, Mr. Hincks was still popular Avith his party. 

9. The clergy-reserves question was fully settled during 
Lord Elgin's administration, by which every semblance of a 
State church was swept away, among all classes of Protestants 
in Upper Canada ; but, while this was transpiring in that 
section, "the Roman Catholic community of the lower prov- 
ince bowed contentedly to the government of their clergy, 
regular and monastic, who quietly collected their tithes, took 
care of their princely city endowments, erected splendid temples 
for their Avorship, and swayed the political aspirations of their 
flocks. No country in the Avorld, not even excepting Spain, is 
such a paradise for the papal clergy as Lower Canada. ■ Secured 
in their broad possessions by the terms of the old French ca- 
pitulation, they repose in peace under the solid and safe protec- 
tion of the British flag ; and revolution or annexation, as regards 
them, can only mean deprivation and misfortune. The simple 
and unlettered habitant bends Avillingly to clerical rule, as the 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 245 

best, not only for his spiritual, but even temporal welfare ; 
while the more educated and refined, who aspire to political 
position, or social influence, find it a paramount necessity to 
bow to priestly domination; so complete, indeed, is its sway, 
that it passes onwards almost unquestioned, and scarcely a 
murmur against its despotic authority escapes from within its 
portals to the world outside. In Montreal its religious and 
educational foundations are wealthy and imposing ; there its 
real estate constantly assumes grander architectural forms, 
whilst its Jesuit and other churches are either marvels of size 
or of splendid interior decoration. In Quebec its huge temples 
tower upwards in a solidity of construction which promises 
perpetual duration, while all around is touched with the finger 
of decay and departing prosperity. In the rural districts its 
churches are the great features of the level landscape, and their 
spires even glance in the far-off northern sunshine, which 
lights so coldly the ripples of the romantic and rock-bound 
Saguenay." 

10. At the close of Lord Elgin's administration he became 
unpopular with the reform party, and it may be said that he 
favored one side of politics beyond a proper discretion. How- 
ever, Lord Elgin's life is a record of noble deeds in the interests 
of his great country. Mr. Hincks remained in Canada but a 
short time after the departure of Lord Elgin. His popularity 
was now pretty much gone, and his immediate followers had 
forsaken his standard. In England he was appointed to the 
governorship of the windward West India Islands and comforted 
by the honor of knighthood. He has returned to Canada, and 
is now prominent in banking operations at Montreal. It is not 
improbable that, should his life be spared, he will, in his old 
age, again force his way into politics. He is one of the ablest 
and most accomplished statesmen in Canada. 



246 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



CHAPTER XXII. 

THE PROVINCE OF CANADA FROM 1840 TO 1867 — (continued). 

ADMINISTRATION OF SIR EDMUND HEAD — VISIT OF THE PRINCE OF WALES. 

1. Sir Edmund Head succeeded Lord Elgin in the gov- 
ernment of Canada. He Avas descended from an ancient and 
honorable English family of Kent. At an early age he pushed 
his way into public life, was made Governor of New Brunswick, 
and finally Governor-General of Canada. On the 23d of Feb- 
ruary, 1855, the new governor-general summoned Parliament. 
The session lasted till the end of May, during which the coalition 
ministry, with a good majority, pushed through a vast amount 
of public business. The governor-general's closing speech of 
this session furnishes valuable historical matter. " He alluded 
to the Clergy Eeserves Act of the preceding session as being 
based on liberal principles, and respecting individual rights ; 
to the Seignorial Tenure Act, as aflecting great changes, with 
some individual hardship, but establishing Canada as the only 
country in the world where the feudal system had expired with- 
out violence and revolution, and to the benefits already arising 
from the operations of the Reciprocity Treaty. Great issues 
had, indeed, been forever disposed of; his excellency had no 
public evils of magnitude to dilate upon ; and, secure in the 
most ample guaranties of their rights, the people of Canada 
could now apply themselves, without let or hindrance, to the 
full development of their material i:)rosperity. A brief para- 
graph in the speech set forth that a measure, passed during 
tiie session, had provided for the improved organization of the 
militia and volunteers, and this was the first step taken towards 
the creation of a volunteer force in Canada. Hitherto, in time 
of piece, the militia was simply a paper organization, and the 
regular troops were alone available in the event of any sudden 
emergency. But the new Militia Act produced a most impor- 
tant change for the better in this respect, and ultimately led to 
the formation of well-drilled and efficiently equipped volunteer 
corps throughout the whole of Canada ; " an element of ad- 
ditional security in time of peace, and an admirable nucleus for 
a militia army in the event of war. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 247 

2. In 1855 Canada took a decided step forward in general 
progress. The general policy of the Peel administration in 
England, which culminated in the repeal of the corn laws, had 
terminated the protective system of trade. Up to this time the 
commercial legislation of Canada had been made to harmonize 
with that of England. " But, left to shift for herself as best she 
could, the Legislature abolished, in 1848, the differential duties in 
favor of direct trade with Great Britain ; and the repeal of the 
imperial Navigation Laws, in 1849, still farther loosened the 
commei'cial bonds between Canada and the mother country. 
As a necessary consequence, the trade policy of the colony again 
became the reflex of that of the parent land ; and the Kecipro- 
city Treaty was the coping-stone of a system, inaugurated six 
years before, which opened wide the portals of the Canadian 
market on equal terms to all the world, and commenced a new 
and more enli2:htened era of connnercial intercourse. With the 
close of 1854 the old trade period may be said to have finally 
terminated. During that j^ar the imports into Canada had 
amounted to forty million five hundred and twenty-nine thou- 
sand three hundred and twenty-five dollars, on which, at an 
average rate of twelve per cent., the duty collected was four 
million nine hundred thousand seven hundred and sixty-nine 
dollars, while the exports were only twenty-three million nine- 
teen thousand one hundred and ninety dollars. The total public 
revenue from all sources was six million eighty-eight thousand 
one hundred and ten dollars, against an expenditure of four 
million one hundred and seventy-one thousand nine hundred and 
forty-one dollars, thus leaving a large surplus, and which led, 
in 1855, to the reduction of the customs tariff to ten per cent. 
On the other hand, the legislation of the three preceding years 
had increased the public debt by twenty-one million dollars, and 
which debt, at the beginning of 1855, had swelled to thirty- 
eight million eight hundred and fifty-one thousand eight 
hundred and thirt3'-three dollars. The greater portion of the 
new debt had been contracted for the Grand Trunk and other 
railways, of which three hundred and thirty miles had now been 
opened, despite the severe monetary pressure mainly resulting 
from the Crimean war. Towards the close of the summer the 
Grand Trunk Eailway had been completed to Brockville, one 
hundred and twenty miles above Montreal, and some of the 
piers of the Victoria Bridge had also been constructed. • The 
rejoicings for the railway opening followed close upon those for 
the fall of Sebastopol, — an occurrence which illuminated almost 



248 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



every city and town from Gaspe to Godericli. The commence- 
ment of the year 18aG brought with it no event of importance 
to record, liailway matters had not yet begun to seriously vex 
the pubhc mind ; and beyond a very shght agitation relative to 
making the legislative council elective, and the seat-of-govern- 
ment question, no political excitement whatever existed. From 
the general tone of the reform press, however, it "svas qiiite 
evident that the feeling of antagonism to Sir Allan M'Nab's 
government was on the increase. It w^as too liberal and pro- 
gressive to suit the family-compact wing of the conservative 
party, but not sufficiently extreme to meet the views of that 
portion of the reform party which acknowledged the leadership 
of jNIr. George Brown. This gentleman, destined at a more 
recent period to till a very prominent position in this country, 
was born in Scotland, at the city of Edinburgh, in 1821. In 

1838 his family emigrated 



to New York, and there his 
father, Mr. Peter Brown, 
a man of large general in- 
formation and excellent 
abilities, commenced the 
mercantile business. But 
his success not beins^ com- 
mensurate with his expec- 
tations he entered, in 
1842, upon the career of 
a public journalist, and 
issued a weekly newspaper, 
intensely Anglo-Saxon in 
every respect, called the 
"British Chronicle." Its 
proposed field of opera- 
tions was already, how- 
ever, too completely filled 
by the " Albion ; " so the " Chronicle " only lived for the brief 
space of eighteen months. In 1843 the family removed to 
Toronto, and there Mr. George Brown became the publisher, in 
the interest of the Free Church Presl)yterians, of a weekly news- 
paper termed the "Banner." In 1844 the publication of this 
journal was relinquished for that of the " Globe," a newspaper 
devoted to reform, politics, general news, and literature, and 
which very speedily attained to a most influential position. In 
1849 he was appointed, by the Baldwin-Lafontaine ministry, as a 




ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 249 

commissioner to investigate certain -alleged abuses in the pro- 
vincial penitentiary, a trust he discharged with much ability 
and benefit to the country. In December, 18G1, he was first 
elected to the Legislature, as a member for the County of Kent, 
and his unquestionably great abilities soon raised him to a con- 
spicuous position. A man of this stamp, and whose personal 
exertions in behalf of his party were aided l)y the great influence 
of the leading reform journal of Upper Canada, coukl not be 
otherwise than a most formidable opponent. Gifted with a clear 
and vigorous intellect, possessed of habits of great industry, and 
of the most indomitable perseverance, his information extenc^ed 
over every branch of the public service, and eminently fitted 
him for the position of a partisan leader and successful 
agitator." 

3. Early in 1856 Mr. Brown's peculiar views, as well as his 
public policy, were rising rapidly into favor with the reform 
party of Upper Canada. His sturdy Protestanism not only 
rallied to his side the Free Church and Methodist denomina- 
tions, which had hitherto entered largely into the composition 
of that party, but was also awakening a profound sympathy in 
the Orano-e element of the conservative ranks. The ao'itation 
against the influence of the Roman Catholic priesthood, now un- 
questionably very great, and against Lower Canadian domina- 
tion, was already becoming popular in the upper province ; and 
the Baldwin and Plincks policy of a union with the French 
conservative or church party, was almost entirely abandoned 
by the western reformers.^ 

4. Such was the condition of affairs when Parliament, on the 
15th of February, assembled at Toronto, whither the seat of 
government had now been removed. The governor-general's 
opening speech set forth that there was a large balance of clergy- 
reserves money awaiting distribution among the several munici- 
palities ; that the subject of an elective legislative council (the 
old French dream of the visionary Papineau) would again be 
brought before Parliament ; recommending reforms in the Legis- 
lature, in the police system, and in prison discipline ; stated that 
a contract for a St. Lawrence line of ocean steamers had been 
completed, and congratulated the country on the inestimable 

1 The remaining poi'tioa of this and the succeeding' chapter are compiled from Mac- 
IMiillea's book, an English copyright work, which, concerning this particular period, is 
both full and accurate. I consider it a much more honorable course to use these para- 
graphs, substantially, from the author spoken of, — John MacMuUen, Esq., — giving duo 
credit therefor, than to rewrite them, using the information, and giving it a new garment- 
ing, and thereby disguising the real authorship. 



250 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

blessing of profound peace, while other parts of the world were 
suffering the privations and miseries of war. A bitter debate 
on the address ensued, and ministers were most violently 
assailed, not only by Mr. Brown and his friends, but also by 
several conservatives, who disliked their secularization of the 
clergy reserves, or were tainted by the extreme Protestant 
views propagated by the " Globe " newspaper, and by other 
journals of a kindred stamp. The cabinet ultimately carried 
the address by a good majority, yet it was quite evident that its 
position was not by any means a secure one, and that the deser- 
ti(jn of many of its supporters might now take place at any 
inauspicious moment. On the 10th of March, John Ilillyard 
Cameron, subsequently Grand Master of the Orange Association 
for many years, moved for a copy of the charge delivered to the 
jury by Judge Duval, on the trial of several men at Quebec for 
the mLirder of a Protestant, Ilobert Corrigan, in the neighboring 
township of St. Sylvester. The judge and jury were all 
Poman Catholics, and the acquittal of the accused, in the face 
of evidence generally deemed conclusive, gave a partial aspect 
to the proceedings, which awoke a storm of indignation on the 
part of the Protestant population of the country. No previous 
trial had ever so deeply moved the public mind of Canada, or 
caused such bitter feeling on the part of the western j^ress ; and 
for a time it seemed as if the Orange element would ally itself 
permanently with the reform party. The formation of a new 
and exclusively Protestant party was now advocated by the 
" Globe " and its immediate partisan contemporaries, while 
several conservative journals leaned strongly in the same 
direction. Under those circumstances Mr. Cameron's motion 
placed ministers in the most serious dilemma. If they agreed 
to its passage, and so permitted Judge Duval's charge to be re- 
viewed by the house, their French-Canadian supporters would 
be seriously offended and alienated ; while, if they pursued 
the opposite course, they must expect to lose the votes 
of some Protestant conservatives. Skilfully covering their 
procedure by constitutional pleas, ministers refused to agree to 
the motion, and were defeated by a majority of four. They 
declined, however, to regard this as a vote of " want of confi- 
dence," on the ground chiefly that a subsequent division, the 
same evening, showed they had still the support of the majority 
of the house. 

5. These occurrences, in addition to the bitter sectional 
conflict caused by the " seat-of-government question," still mi- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



251 



decided, materially weakened the ministry ; and it now became 
evident that some changes must be made in its composition, or 
it would ere long be compelled to surrender the reins of power 
into the hands of the opposition. The Hincksite section cavilled 
at the premiership of !Sir Allan M'Nab, on the score of his past 
" finnily-compact " proclivities, and imagined that, if he were 
compelled to retire altogether from the cabinet, it would 
strengthen their hands Avith the reform party, and disarm the 
hostility of its press. Born at the town of Niagara, in 1798, 
Sir Allan had soldiered it stoutly during the three years' war 
with the United States, was long a member of the Canadian 
Legislature, and, as we have already seen, rendered important 
services during the dark period of the rebellion. Solid, loyal, 
and respectable, his past excellent and consistent record, and 
not his brilliancy of intellect, had raised him to the position of 
party leader. But ambition could no longer endure even re- 
spectable mediocrity, and his colleagues now determined to 
sacrifice Sir Allan M'Nal:), with the doul)le object of propitiating 
the opposition, and of making way for the more able leadership 
of the attorney-general, John A. Macdonald. The intrigue 
was successful, and on the 23d of 
May the premier resigned, to be 
succeeded by Mr. Taclie, a member 
of the legislative council, and a 
Lower Canadian of respectable repu- 
tation and abilities. But Mr. Mac- 
donald, as the ministerial leader in 
the Assembly, was the real head of 
the administration ; and from that 
day to this has occupied a foremost 
place in the public counsels of his 
country. Like many other political 
notabilities of Canada, he had been the 
architect of his own fortunes, and 
may briefly be told. The son of 

established themselves at the city of Kingston, he applied 
himself, in 1829, to the study of the law, although then 
but fifteen years of age, and had barely attained his majority 
when admitted to the bar, — a matter at that day of even less 
difficulty than it is now. A brilliant defence of the unfortunate 
Pole, Von Schultz, captured at the battle of the AYindmill, in 
1839, brought the young lawyer into prominent notice ; and his 
great tact, genial nature, and aflfable manners made him a 




MACDONALD. 



his biographical story 
Scottish parents, who 



252 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

favorite with the public, and added to his rising reputation. In 
1844 he was elected for Kingston, and has since continued to be 
the member for his native city, despite various attempts to 
unseat him. Attaching himself to the conservative party, he 
was appointed in 1847 receiver-general in the Draper adminis- 
tration, but had only a brief term of office, owing to its defeat 
in 1848. For the ensuing six years Mr. Macdonald remained 
in opposition, and on the resignation of Mr. Hincks his counsel 
and assistance led in no small degree to the formation of the 
coalition ministry. A ready and fluent speaker, tenacious of 
purpose, possessed of great tact and sterling administrative 
ability, he has filled a most prominent position as a pul)lic man, 
through a long, and at times most critical, period for this 
country, and has tided it safely over difficulties of the most 
serious kind. 

6. Aside from parliamentary matters, but few events of note, 
intimately affecting this country, transpired during the year. A 
terrible railway accident, the first of the kind which had 
occurred in Canada, on the 12th of March, 1856, awoke a 
general feeling of the most painful description. A passenger 
train from Toronto to Hamilton broke through a bridge over the 
Desjardins Canal, leading to Dundas, crashed through the solid 
ice beneath, and seventy people were killed. The Treaty of 
Paris, signed on the 1st of April, which terminated the war 
with Russia, was gladly hailed throughout Canada as an assur- 
ance of peace and prosperity to the parent land. But the year 
had not yet terminated when war broke out between Great 
Britain and China, and the progress of hostilities, although so 
remote, had a depressing influence on the commerce of this 
country. The mutiny of the hitherto pampered and caressed 
Sepoys of the Bengal army, in British India, in the earlier part 
of the ensuing year, 1857, tended still farther to produce a 
stringency in the money market, and a consequent derangement 
in trade, which seriously checked the progress of Canada, and 
paved the way for the commercial crisis which soon after 
ensued. 

7. On the 26th of June, 1857, a terrible catastrophe oc- 
curred in Canadian waters. A large steamboat, plying between 
Montreal and Quebec, took fire off Cape Rouge when on her 
way upwards, and speedily burned to the water's edge. Of 
two hundred and fifty-eight immigrants, mostly from the Scot- 
tish Highlands, who had embarked in the "Montreal," only 
fifty-eight were saved, although the river at this point is 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 253 

scarcely a mile wide, and the total loss was estimated at two 
hundred and tifty souls. In the month of August much public 
interest was excited by the efibrt, now being made for the first 
time, to lay an electric cable between Ireland and Newfound- 
land. After four hundred miles had been submerged, the cable 
broke, and the project was abandoned for the time. In Sep- 
tember a s-erious monetary and commercial crisis arose in the 
United States, which produced numerous bank and mercantile 
failures there, and reacted very unfavorably on Canada. This 
circumstance, in connection with the collapse of commercial 
credit which followed shortly afterwards in England, a poor 
harvest, and the almost total cessation of railway expenditure 
in this country, produced a great stagnation of trade, and caused 
a considerable falling oft' in the public revenue. This state of 
things, coupled with the fact that, with the single exception of 
the Great Western line, government had now to assume the 
payment of interest, amounting to eight hundred thousand dol- 
lars per annum, on all the railway advances, as well as the 
interest on the Municipal Loan Fund debt, now reaching an- 
nually to about four hundred thousand dollars, caused a serious 
deficit in the public exchequer. At the close of 1857 the 
entire income of Canada was five millions three hundred and 
fifty-two thousand seven hundred and ninety-four dollars, 
while the total expenditure summed up to five millions six hun- 
dred and ninety-two thousand nine hundred and forty-two 
dollars. Too many costly public works had been undertaken, 
in the fever of excitement introduced by the railway and 
loan-fund legislation of the Hincks administration ; more rail- 
ways had been built than were required by the necessities of 
the country, or than its legitimate tratfic could sustain ; and 
the reaction which commenced this year was in part the in- 
evitable result of undue speculation. Public improvements had 
been made in advance of the population, the wealth, and the 
commerce of the country ; and the increase, in the progress 
of time, of these elements of national greatness could alone 
restore the healthy equilibrium of the financial condition of 
the body politic. 

8. As the year drew towards its close, Mr. Tache resigned 
the premiership, and Mr. John A. Macdonald became his suc- 
cessor. A dissolution of Parliament was now determined on, 
and the country was speedily wrapped in the excitement of a 
general election. The most strenuous exertions were made, by 
ministers and their friends, to secure a majority in the new As- 



254 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



sembly ; while the reform party, vigorously led by the " Globe " 
newspaper, used every effort in the opposite direction. Every 
possible cry Av^as raised in order to defeat the government, and 
even religious issues were had recourse to during the contest. 

The Hincks element in the re- 
form party of Upper Canada now 
completely disappeared, while in 
the lower province, on the other 
hand, the Rouge party, which had 
allied itself Avith Mr. BroAvn, met 
with almost total defeat. The 
latter result had been chiefly 
produced by the hostility of the 
French Roman Catholic clergy, 
who regarded the avowed re- 
publicanism of the Rouges, and 
the outspoken Protestantism of 
Mr. Brown, Avith almost equal 




SIR E. P. TACH^. 



dislike. Nor Avere the religious 



issues raised in Upper Canada barren of results. On the con- 
trary, they produced a complete revolution in public sentiment 
in several electoral districts ; and in the city of Toronto the 
union of the numerous Orange body Avith the reformers secured 
the return of Mr. BroAvn, and who, noAV at the zenith of his 
popularity, Avas also elected for the North Riding of Oxford. 
But the principal result of this election Avas the creation of a 
new and most embarrassing public issue. The preponderance, 
although small in extent, secured by the reform party in Up- 
per Canada must render it necessary for ministers, if they 
desired to retain their portfolios, to abandon the "double-ma- 
jority" principle, that is, a majority in their favor from both 
Upper and LoAver Canada separatel}^ as Avell as collectively, 
and deemed necessary hitherto, in order to prevent unpalatable 
legislation from being forced by one province on another. This 
principle had been adhered to since the union in 1840, by the 
various administrations ; and its recognition had led Mr. Bald- 
Avin to resign, in consequence of the adverse vote of Upper 
Canadians on his Court of Chancery policy for their province, 
although sustained by a large majority of the Avhole house. 
A principle of this kind has never been entertained for a single 
moment by the Imperial Parliament, and in Avhich it has not at 
any time l)een deemed necessary that ministers should have a 
majority of Scotch members on Scotch questions, nor of Irish 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



255 



members on Irish measures. Yet, however untenable the 
double-majority principle might be on the score of sound con- 
stitutional politics, the antagonism of race, and even of interest, 
rendered its exercise necessary hitherto to harmonious legisla- 
tion. While the criminal laws of the country had gradually 
assumed a uniform condition, the civil law had one statute-book 
for Upper and another for Lower Canada ; and it became nec- 
essary, therefore, to exercise the utmost care to avoid exciting 
the prejudices of race, and, we might also add, of creed. 
Hence arose the adoption of the double-majority principle, and 
its abandonment by the administration of ]Mr. John A, Mac- 
donald led immediately to the cry of French domination on the 
part of the reform party, to the agitation for representation hy 
population, and paved the way for the governmental dead-lock 
which ultimately ensued, and the only remedy for which was 
the Imperial Act of Confederation of 1867. 

9. Parliament met on the 28th of February, 1858, at 
Toronto, and was found to l)e largely composed of new mem- 
bers, of Avhom sixt}'-tive had been returned. Among these 
was John Sheridan Hogan, whose clever essay on Canada has 
been so generally read, and whose subsequent murder by a band 
of thieves and prostitutes at the Don Bridge, Toronto, created 
such a profound sensation at the time. But the most notable of 
the legislative novelties was un- 
questionably Thomas DArcy 
McGee, elected by the Irish- 
men of Montreal West, and 
whose publicly expressed de- 
sire " to have half an hour on 
the floor of the house with 
George Brown," had at length 
been gratified. A newspaper 
correspondent quaintly nar- 
rates, that "Mr. McGee took 
the oath of allegiance without 
hesitation, and subscribed it 
with a firm hand." The man 
who had written such daring 
refrains as the " Felon flag of 
England," had indeed settled 
down into a respectable and 
law-abiding Canadian citizen, and now sat in its Legislature as the 
advocate of Roman Catholicism, and the antidote of the Puritan 




256 HISTORY OF dominion of CANADA, 



Mr. Bro^'n, but whose general policy he Avas speedily found 
supporting, thus verifying the old adage that extremes some- 
times meet. 

10. The election of speaker at once developed the weakness 
of the opposition, who had declined to put forward a candi- 
date of their own. Henry Smith, of Kingston, the ministerial 
candidate for the speakership, was elected by seventy-nine 
against forty-two votes ; and this fact having been duly notified 
to Iho gov(>rnor-gcneral, he came down in state, on the follow- 
ing day, to open the house. As 1)elittcd the occasion of a new 
Pai-lianient, his speech was more lengthy than usual. It alluded 
to the progress of the rebellion in India ; to the disturbance of 
commercial relations, which had distinguished the latter part of 
the preceding year ; to the necessity of sundry improvements in 
the law, and to the fact " that the country had gone to the 
utmost limit of pecuniary aid to the Grand Trunk Kailway," 
and against farther assistance, to which a great outcry had 
already been raised outside, as well as in, the Legislative As- 
sembly. 

11. The debate on the address was at once stormy and pro- 
tracted. The opposition, led most ably by INlr, Brown, assailed 
the policy of the ministry at all i)oints, and exultingly pointed 
to their majority from Upper Canada as evidence of the sound- 
ness of their views, and the popularity of their position. As 
the session progressed, the question of representation by popu- 
lation, without regard to a dividing line between Upper and 
LoW'Cr Canada, was strongly pressed on the attention of the 
house, but negatived by a vote of sixty-four to tift3'-two. The 
minority was composed of the whole reform representatives of 
Upper Canada, with the single exception of .lohn S. JNlacdonald, 
of Cornwall. Thus the abandonment of the double-majority 
principle had already produced an agitation of a new and 
formidable character. 

12. Foiled, however, at every other point by the skilful 
fencing of ministers, the opposition at length determined to 
avail themselves of the seat-of-government question in order to 
defeat them. And here it may be necessary to remind the 
reader, in order to understand more fully the nature of this 
question, that after the destruction by a mob of the Parliament 
building in JMontreal, it had been determined to hold the seat 
of government alternately at Toronto and Quebec, iu order to 
propitiate the representatives of both sections. This peram- 
bulating system had proved to be alike most expensive and 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 257 

inconvenient, and dnring the session of the preceding year, both 
branches of the Legishiture had agreed to a resolution asking 
the queen to decide the question of a permanent seat of govern- 
ment, and which, owing to their h)cal interests and sectional 
jealousies, they could not themselves agree on. Parliament 
had supplemented this request by passing an act appropriating 
the sum of nine hundred thousand dollars for the erection of 
public buildings at such place as her majesty might be gra- 
ciously pleased to designate. And thus the matter stood at the 
close of 1857. 

13. The three years' war with the United States had taught 
the imperial government the necessity of some safe mode of 
communication from tide water to the great lakes. After 
various explorations, the inland route up the Ottawa was selected, 
to a point where an affluent of that river, the Ridcau, leaps 
down in a foaming cascade upon its turbid waters ; and from 
thence a ship canal, connecting lakes and rivers, was to extend 
navigation, by a circuitous route, to the fortified post of Kings- 
ton, the Frontenac of French dominion, at the foot of Lake 
Ontario. In May, 1826, Lieutenant-Colonel John By, of the 
Royal Engineers, arrived in Canada to carry out this project 
(completed in 1834), and made his head-quarters where the 
proposed canal was to descend, by eight locks, a deep declivity 
of some ninety feet in perpendicular height to the Ottawa river. 
The romantic beauty of this sequestered woodland spot had no 
counterpart in all Canadti. Less than a mile above, the noble 
current of the Ottawa, speeding on its way from the north-west 
oceanwards, narrows into picturesque rapids, and then plunges 
down the Falls of the Chaudiere, in a cloud of spray and mist, 
to chafe against -its steep, rocky boundaries below. Grassy 
dells, where the parasitical wild vine cluug to the umbrageous 
forest tree, and hills covered by the stately and solemn white 
pine, along which the wild deer bounded, and where the notes 
of the whippoorwill reechoed plaintively through the solitude, 
at intervals varied the landscape. And here it was that, under 
the fostering care of Col. By, and stimulated l)y the expenditure 
of English gold, gradually aros3 a town, maiidy peopled at first 
by the rough diggers of the canal, and the stalwart lumbermen, 
hahltant and Anglo-Saxon, who so mercilessly hewed down 
the magnificent pine forests of the Ottawa, and whose careless- 
ness so frequently produced conflagrations in the woods, still 
more destructive than themselves. Genuine rough "shiners" 
were all these sturdy backwoodsmen, and many years elapsed 



258 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 




THE PARLIAMENT BUILDINGS AT OTTAWA, ONT. 



before their rude impress made way for a more refined civili- 
zation. But tiiey were not the less its solid percursors there as 
well as elsewhere. B}i;own, the centre of a vast lumber trade, 
and spreading out its settlements on every side, gradually cx- 
^ panded into a city of 

some fourteen thou- 
sand inhabitants, two 
parts English and one 
part French, and then 
it ungratefully cast 
from it the appropriate 
name derived from its 
founder, and selected 
the more euphonious 
Indian one of Ottawa. 
And this was the site 
^fgj wisely selected by the 
^-^^^- queen for the perma- 
nent seat of provincial 
government. The cur- 
rent of the river of the Outawas, here not quite half a mile 
wide, separated the straggling little city from Lower Canada; 
and thus, situated on the borders of both sections, in a locality, 
too, with a mixed population, the selection was a triumph to 
neither ; while its easy accessibility by steamboat and railway, 
and its inland central situation, made it, of itself, a desirable 
point for the seat of government. Thanks to the provident 
foresight of Colonel By, the crown had reserved a bold head- 
land rising over the river, and on this the Parliament buildings 
of the Dominion of Canada, the finest structures of the kind on 
l^his continent, have been erected, at an expense many times 
-greater than was at first intended. 

14. Nothing, certainly, could have been more judicious, 
Tom every point of view, than her majesty's gracious decision, 
let it met with little favor from those parties who, influenced 
Oy motives of personal or local benefit, desired to set the ad- 
vantage of the seat of government at Toronto or Quebec, above 
their sovereign's selection, or the necessities of the country. 
It w^as a weak and unwise stand-point from which to assail a 
ministry, and exhibited an utter w^ant of tact, and a recklessness 
of ulterior consequences. A motion, that it was a cause of 
deep regret that her majesty had l)cen advised to select OttaAva 
as the capital of the country, was carried, on the 28th of July, 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 259 

by a majority of fourteen. Ministers shrewdly saw the advan- 
tage they must derive from this vote, and, although it was 
ostensibly a censure on the queen's judgment and decision, and 
not on them, at once determined to resign. Thus they com 
pletely identified themselves with their sovereign, and that 
sovereign, too, a woman ; and, in becoming her defenders, were 
covered by the shadow of the public sympathy which at once 
encircled her. Nor were their shrewdness and tact without 
their prompt reward. Vexed with themselves that selHsh 
motives hacl led them into a false position, the conservatives 
from Upper and Lower Canada, who voted for the mt)tion, took 
the first opportunity to act hostilely to the opposition, in order 
to redeem their owai reputation. 

15. As the leader of the opposition, Mr. Brown was im- 
mediately written to by the governor-general, offered a seat in 
the executive council, as the premier of a new administration, 
and requested to signify his acceptance of this oficr in writing. 
On the following evening his excellency informed Mr. Brown 
that he would give him no pledge in reference to a dissolution 
of Parliament, but that any advice tendered him on this subject 
would at once receive his serious consideration. To a proroga- 
tion, however, he would pledge himself, provided two or three 
bills, which he deemed necessary for the public welfare, should 
be passed, and the necessary supplies secured by a vote of 
credit. Mr. Brow^n accepted these conditions, and at once pro- 
ceeded to form the cabinet. On the ensuins: evenino- Mr. 
Patrick, of Prescott, announced the names of the new ministry. 
It met with scant favor at the hands of the House of Assembly. 
On the motion of Mr. Langcvin, seconded by Mr. Robinson, this 
body declared, by a vote of seventy-one to thirty-one, that they 
had no confidence in Mr. Brown's administration ; wdiile the 
upper chaml)er made a similar declaration on a division of 
sixteen to eight. The ostensible reasons alleged for this action 
were, that the members of the new cabinet already stood pledged 
to opposite principles, and had not publicly announced a pro- 
gramme of their ministerial policy ; but the true causes were the 
strong dislike entertained towards Mr. Brown by the great 
majority of the memljers from Lower Canada, and the desire 
of others to retrace their course, as regarded their opposition 
to the queen's decision on the seat-of-government question. 
This adverse vote led the cabinet to demand a dissolution, on 
the ground that the House of Assembly did not command the 
confidence of the country, aside from the circumstance, that it 



2()0 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



WHS ciitillcd lo :ill llu; .support which llic ^ovcnior-n'ciu'ral could 
giv(! it. \\\i\, his (*\(uilh'ncy, Avhosc; ])()lili(';il h':iiiin<j,s wviw ([iijto 
cvi(h'iitly ill another (hrcctioii, <l('cliiK'(l lo t.-ikc, this step, on 
S(5Voral (constitutional gr(Minds. JIc iir<j^(Ml that a. nc^w-cdccted 
house, nuist repr(\s(Mitlhoi)(M)[)lc ;thut the business of l*arlianieut 
had not boon conipletcd ; that the corruption alleged to have 
Imumi practised at th(^ rcnnuit (decjtions would only be repea(e<l 
in a iwAV onic, uidess legislative (Miadnients interpos(!d, and that 
the law ot" (deetion should lirst he altei-ed. And a calm and 
dis[)assionatc view otlho case must lead to the concdusion that 
Sir Kdniund Ih^ul had .stron<j^ f^rounds for tho policy ho avowed, 
'{'he Brown cahini^i had now no courses left l)ut to resii>-n, and 
which course it ac(!oi(lin;^ly })ursued, alter it had i-eniained in 
power for tho briid" jx'i'iod of two days. Sir lOdnuuid Head 
wa.s nev(>r for<::iven for his conduct at this crisis, lie was ac- 
cused of j)arliality, of l(!anin<^ unconstitutionally to tho conserv- 
ative parly, and from that day foi-ward his acts W(>re most 
unfavorably criticiscnl by the reform pi-ess, and his [)ositiou 
rendered exceedinnly unpleasant. Like so many of his })ro- 
decossors, ho had tl(!e[)ly otrenckul oiui of the political i)arties of 
the country, by apparently sui)portin<]f another, and had accord- 
ingly to pay tho })enalty of ])artial unpopularity. 

1(5. Theri! are very lew readers of classical English literature, 
who \v\vc not ma(l(^ Ihe accjuaintance, in some Avay or another, of 
John Gait, tho friend and biographer of tho poet liyron. This 

gentleman came to this country 
in 182(5, as a conunissioner of 
the (Canada Land ('om|)any, and 
remained here for a, period of 
three \-ears. lb; left a pleasant 
j'ecord behind him, and (bunded 
(Jucdph, while the touii of (Jalt 
continues to perpetuate his nuMU- 
ory. In l.S,");) his ^^on Alexander, 
then only a youth of se\'enteen 
summers, eonunenced life in the 
enslern t()wnshi[)s, ;is a jimior 
clerk in the: ser\ ice of tho 

lirilish American Land Com- 
siR A. T. r.Ai/r. It- !• I o i I 1 1 •! 

j)any. I lis cai-etui Scotch haluts, 

natural ability, .-nid attention lo his duties, won for Mr. 
(Jalt tlu^ contideiice of the company, and the lapse of twenty- 
two years Ibund him tho chief manager of its estates, in Ib-ii), 




ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



261 



this self-made man Avas elected for tlic^ couiily of Sherl)r()<)ko, 
and ill 1(S4.'5 I'or ihv town oftlu* the saiiui name, and foi- which ho 
has heen constantly retm-ned iVom Ihat day to this. Of lih(M-al 
and iiroiiTcssive views, of mild and unassnmiiii;' manners, an ex- 
cellent spc!aker, and in-ofonndly Ncrsed in mailers of Iradii and 
iinanee, Mr. (ialt had gradually risen to the foremost, |)lae(5 in 
the house, and, in the present exigency, the- governor-general 
turni'd lo him, on llie resignation of the Brown cal)in<'l, as tlu^ 
jierson hest iided lo form an adminislraiion. Wui, at once a 
Protestant and a repi'esenlalive of an Knglish-speaking Lower 
Canadian constiluency, Mr. (Jalfs ])osili()n was one of isolation 
as regarded the I^^'cnch element in the Legislal inc, while his 
opinions were of loo modest a slamp lo coniniaiKl llie con- 



^^^- 1 




sin r.EO. K. OAiiTir.n. 



fidcnce of either of Ihe polilical par- 
tics now slruguling lor suj)remae.y 
in the western i)rovinee. AVell aware 
that lluv^e causes ])i-ecluded him from 
])cc()ming a successful ministerial 
leader, and nuist ahvays comixd him 
to occupy a suhordinale position in 
any governmeni, he promptly and 
wisely declined th(> prollered honor. 
Mr. Cartier, as the leader of tlie 
Lower Canada majority, was next 
applied to l)y his exccdlency, and 
that gentleman, with the aid of Mr. 
John A. Macdonald, speedily suc- 
ceeded in forming a n(MV cahinet , and in which Mr. (Ialt Ix'canie 
finance minister. 

17. Out of the foi-mation of this administration a circinn- 
stance arose, which prodin-ed unmeasured censures from the 
reform party. The Independenc<^ of Paidiainent Act of l.Sf)? 
provided, in its seventh section, that if any memher of a, cahinet 
elected to serve in the legislative assembly, or legislative 
council,' resigned his oIKce, and within one month after his 
resignation accei)ted another otlice in thegov(n-nmenl, he should 
not therehy vacate his seat. Accordingly, those memhers of 
the Macd()nald cabinet who now accepted ofKco did not go 
1)ack to their constituents for reidection, and sought to comply 
with this hnv, soon after rejK'aled, and which should never 
have been enacted, by a sim[)le exchange of ])ositions. Ihit, 
whatever might hav(^ heen tlu^ intention of the h\w, snbse<|nent 
events proved that the ministry had complied with its provisions 



2G2 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



in a legal point of view. Actions were brought against such 
of them as had exchanged their offices, in the Court of Queen's 
Bench and Common Pleas, and Avhich, under the ruling of the 
judges, resulted in their favor. And, while the legality of their 
conduct was thus csta])lished, its constitutionality was also 
asserted by a solemn vote of Parliament. At the same time 
the members of the new administration, who had to return to 
their constituents for approval, Avero all reelected. But, what- 
ever excite- 
ment might 
have attend- 
ed the clos- 
ing of Parlia- 
ment was, on 
the following 
day, wholly 
dimmed by 
the news that 
the Atlantic 
cable had 
been success- 
fully laid. 
Such was 
indeed the 
case ; but its 
infant life 

THE GKEA.T EASTERN LAYING THE ATLANTIC CABLE. liardlV SUf- 

liced for the 
transmission of her majesty's brief message of congratulation 
to President Buchanan ere it flickered to a close ; and it still 
I'emained for science to bring the Old and JSTew Worlds within 
Speaking distance, and to enable the wonderful electric spark to 
travel Avith the thoughts of two hemispheres through the deep 
abyss of the Atlantic Ocean. As the year drew towards its 
close the country "was called upon to mourn the death of 
Robert P^aldwin, the Nestor of genuine Canadian reform, the 
victim of ingratitude and contumely. Two days afterwards 
his brethren of the bar met at Osgoodc Hall, Toronto, to pay 
their fitting tribute to his memory, and where the two great 
Macdonalds, John A. and John S., bitter opponents in 
political life, united to honor a man whose remembrance should 
always be green in the memories and hearts of the Canadian 
people. 




>:^^ 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 263 

18. Pai'liamcnt met at the early date of the 29tli of January, 
1859, and the governor-general's speech was more than usually 
suggestive. It declared that it was now necessary to carry out 
the statute of the queen's decision, relative to a permanent seat 
of government ; that the Seignorial Tenure Commission would 
shortly close its labors, and that a moderate outlay, beyond the 
appropriation of 1854, would satisfy all claims. It likewise 
staled that the project of a union of all liritish North America 
had formed the subject of a correspondence with the home 
government, which would be laid before the house ; that the 
commercial and financial depression had not wholly disap- 
peared, and that it was to be hoped the exercise of a sound and 
rigid economy would enable Parliament to bring the expenses 
within the limits of the public revenue. The address, in re- 
sponse to this speech, was permitted to pass without much 
acrimonious debate. But a question, however, speedily arose 
which tested the position of ministers. Mr. Brown's name was 
designedly left off the Committee of Public Accounts, and a 
motion to have it placed thereon was accepted by the cabinet 
as expressing a want of confidence in its members, and was lost 
by a majority of seventeen. This vote had a tranquillizing 
effect on the house, and the public business was now proceeded 
with in comparative quiet. The most notable measures of this 
session were a new Customs Act, which, owing to the continued 
deficiency in the revenue, advanced the rate of duty on the 
bulk of staple importations to twenty per cent. ; but, at the 
same time, wisely made provision for a large free list of raw 
products, to stimulate local manufactures, and the acts respect- 
ing the consolidated statutes of Canada and Upper Canada 
respectively. The work of consolidation had at length been 
most carefully completed, and at once proved of the greatest 
value to the bench, the bar, and the magistracy of the countrj". 
The seat-of-governmerit question was fully set at rest, and the 
public buildings at Ottawa were to be at once proceeded with, 
while a loyally couched and most pressing invitation was given 
her majesty, and any member of the ro}'al family, to visit 
Canada, and open the Victoria Eailway Bridge at Montreal, 
now on the point of completion. Towards the close of the 
session some trouble was caused by the upper chamber refus- 
ing to adopt the supply bill, in consequence of its containing 
an item to defray the expenses of removing the government to 
Quebec, and where it was to remain until the buildings at Ottawa 
were completed. But this exhibition of unusual independence 



2G4 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

iu the legislative council was of very brief duration. More 
mature consideration of the matter led to calmer resolves, the 
supply bill was eventually passed as sent up by the Assembly, 
and the session closed in peace on the 4th of jNlay, 1859. 

19. While the United States were convulsed by the shock 
of northern abolitionism with southern slavery, caused by the 
insane attempt of John BroAvn, — the small cloud, like a man's 
hand, Avhich presaged the advancing storm, — the summer sun- 
shine of Canada remained undimmed by a single untoward 
event. In November a great gathering of the leaders of the 
reform party took place at Toronto. The abandonment of the 
double-majority principle by ministers, and the fact that they 
were in a parliamentary minority as regarded Upper Canada 
votes, naturally led, at this convention, to a loud cry of Lower 
Canadian domination, and to a demand for representation by 
pojoulation. The conclusion was arrived at, that the union of 
Upper and Lower Canada had failed to realize the intentions 
of its promoters; that the constitution itself was defective, and 
that the formation of two or more local governments, with 
some joint authority over all, had now become a paramount 
necessity. The resolutions which embodied these opinions 
Avere inspired by Mr. Brown, and thus was laid the tangible 
basis of an agitation which ultimately led to confederation. 
The only other event of note which the remainder of the year 
produced was the actual commencement of the Parliament 
buildings. On the 22d of December ground was broken for 
the foundations, and the prospect of their town becoming the 
seat of government gave additional zest to the Christmas fes- 
tivities of the citizens of Ottawa. The prize for which Quebec 
and Toronto had so licrcely contested had fallen most unex- 
pectedly into their hands. 

20. As the result of the new tariff, and also of an abundant 
harvest, which stimulated the commerce of the country, the 
public revenue for 1859 had increased to six million two hun- 
dred and fortj^-eight thousand six hundred and seventy-nine 
dollars, while the expenditure was only six million ninety- 
nine thousand five hundred and seventy dollars. The imports 
for the year amounted to thirty-three million five hundred 
and fifty-five thousand one hundred and sixty-one dollars, and 
the exports to twenty-four million seven hundred and sixty- 
six thousand nine hundred and eighty-one dollars, there 
being thus, as usual, a large trade-balance against this 
country, to be made good by the expenditure in one way or 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 265 

another of foreign capital. Nearly all the great railway enter- 
prises were completed, and a total of two thousand and ninety- 
three miles had now been constructed and put in operation. 
The public debt had largely increased, and amounted to 
fifty-four million one hundred and forty-two thousand and forty- 
four dollars, of which the sum of twenty-eight million six hun- 
dred and seven thousand and thirteen dollars was an indirect 
liability, representing advances on the security of the province 
to railway companies, and, also, under the provisions of the 
Loan Fund Act, to municipalities. But none of the public 
debt had been contracted for the support of fleets and armies, 
and owed its origin almost wholly to the prosecution of great 
works for the development of the agricultural, mineral, and 
other resources of the country. 

21. On the 28th of February, 1860, the Legislature as- 
sembled at Quebec, whither the scat of government had, in the 
preceding summer, been removed. After the usual routine 
proceedings, which embraced no feature worthy of notice, had 
terminated, the governor-general laid before the lower house 
a despatch from the colonial secretary, the Duke of Newcastle. 
It announced the receipt of the joint address of both chambers 
to the queen, inviting her to visit this country, and the ex- 
pression of her legret that, owing to her presence being re- 
quired at the seat of empire, she was unable to comply with 
their request. Impressed, however, with an earnest desire to 
testify, to the utmost of her power, her warm appreciation of 
the affectionate loyalty of her Canadian subjects, the cjueen ex- 
pressed, through her minister, the hope that his royal high- 
ness the Prince of Wales would be able to attend the ceremony 
of opening the Victoria Bridge in her name. 

22. The Legislature had only been a brief period in session 
when the opposition proceeded to develop the policy deter- 
mined on at the Toronto Keform Convention of the, preceding- 
November. Mr. Brown gave notice that he would move two 
resolutions : the first beiu": to the effect that the existins: leofis- 
lative union of Upper and Lower Canada had failed to realize 
the anticipations of its promoters, had resulted in a heavy 
debt, great political abuses, and universal dissatisfaction ; and 
that from the antagonism developed, through difierence of 
origin, local interest, and other causes, the union in its present 
form could no longer be continued with advantage to the 
people. The second resolution set forth that the true remedy 
for those evils would be found in the formation of two or more 



266 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

local governments, to which should be committed all matters 
of a sectional character, and the erection of some joint authority 
to dispose of the affairs common to all. Three weeks after- 
wards Mr. Foley moved a direct vote of want of confidence in 
ministers, and Mr. Ouimet an amendment thereto of a directly 
opposite character. An amendment to the amendment was 
moved by another member of the opposition, Mr. Laberge, 
Avliich struck at the cabinet indirectly. On this being put it 
was negatived by sixty-eight to forty-four votes. A new 
a,mendment was then presented, censuring ministers, because 
one of them (j\Ir. Macdonald) belonged to the Orange body, 
and which was lost by one hundred and five to nine votes. Its 
bad result, however, did not deter another member from 
moving that the house did not repose confidence in the ad- 
ministration, because it had deserted Roman Catholic interests, 
and especially as regarded separate school reform in Upper 
Canada. But this motion met with even w^orse success than its 
predecessors, and was sustained by only six votes. Mr. 
Ouimet's amendment, expressing confidence in ministers, was 
then put to the house, w^hen the yeas were seventy and the 
nays fort}' -four. This vote convinced the opposition of the 
uselessness of farther attempts to compel the resignation of 
the cabinet ; the public business w^as now quietly pushed for- 
ward, and towards the close of April the "Estimates," among 
which was oiic item of twenty thousand dollars to defray the 
expenses of the anticipated visit of the Prince of Wales, were 
well adv^anced. Meanwhile, a serious division had arisen in 
the ranks of the opposition, many of whom w^ere now most 
unwilHng to follow any longer the leadership of Mr. Brown. 
This feeling produced a public quarrel in the house between 
the latter and some of his political friends ; and Mr. Campbell, 
the member ibr Itouville, implored him to retire from the lead- 
ership of a party w^itli which, so long as he remained at the 
head of it, the French Canadians could never unite. 

23. On the 8th of May INIr. Brown's resolutions in refer- 
ence to the constitutional relations of Upper and Lower Canada . 
were taken up and finally disposed of. The first w^as negatived 
by a vote of sixty-seven to twenty-six, and the second, meeting 
no better fate, was lost on a division of seventy-four to thirty- 
two. This result evinced in the most emphatic manner that 
only a small minority of the Assembly were in favor of a fed- 
eral union on the basis propounded by Mr. Brown ; yet 
subsequent events have plainly demonstrated that his only 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 267 

error lay in being in advance of his contemporaries, and also 
of general public opinion. His "joint authority " scheme was 
the one ultimately adopted, despite the censure it met with at 
this time from the leaders of the ministerial party. On the 
19th of May, after a loyal address of welcome to the Prince 
of AVales had been agreed to, a session which had been pro- 
ductive of no very remarkable legislation was brought to a 
close, and the Parliament prorogued in a brief and appropriate 
speech by the governor-general, to assemble again some three 
months afterwards, in order to greet the arrival of the heir to 
the British throne. 

24. No prospective event in Canada had ever cast such a 
joyous shadow before it as the now looked-for advent of the 
Prince of Wales. Fnmi one end of the country to the other it 
evoked a feeling of the most loyal enthusiasm, and people of 
all classes, and of all shades of politics, now united most cor- 
dially to do honor to the imperial representative of their good 
queen. From every direction along the proposed route of 
progress arose the din of preparation ; and city and town and 
village corporations voted money to decorate their localities, 
and make titting arrangements otherwise. At Quebec a portion 
of the Parliament buildings had been handsomely litted up for 
the reception of the prince and his suite, and here, on the 21st 
of August, he was received in state by both houses of the 
Legislature, headed I)y their speakers, Narcisseau Belleu, of 
the Council, and Henry Smith, of the Assembly ; and both of 
whom received the honor of knighthood. The festivities all 
terminated at Quebec, and progress westward was resumed to 
Montreal, where a grand ovation awaited his royal highness. 
As the steiimer "Kingston," which carried him and his suite, 
entered the harl)or, the l)atteries of St. Helen's Island thun- 
dered out a royal salute, the sailors of the vessels of war 
manned the yards and made the welkin ring with cheers, taken 
up by the vast multitude who lined the sulistantial wharves, 
while the city bells reverl)erated ftir and wide their sonorous 
tones of welcome. A little farther on, the current of the noble 
river, still dialing angrily from its descent of the Lachino 
Rapids, was spanned by the Victoria bridge, the idea of which 
first assumed tangible shape in the mind of a talented Canadian 
engineer, Thomas C. Kcefer, to be elaborated and perfected 
by the genius of a Stephenson. Stret(?hing ten thousand feet 
from shore to shore, with pier-openings two hundred feet 
in width, and rising in the centre one hundred feet above high- 



268 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

water mark, to permit Like steamers to pass beneath, this 
colossal structuro stood, the eighth wonder of the world. And 
this was the bridge now formally opened for traffic by the 

Prince of Wales, in 

^^^ i^-s??ife5i- - the name of his au- 

1:^: ^ _=!--^ : 1-^ c^^s^ ^g gust mother, after 

^~^''^'^i'^iXf^i^^^^^'iL.,Jl^ U- - "^IT^ ^vhom it was most 

^-^'-^'^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^ tM^^^^—^T-^^^^^^Mdi ;fitly called. Next 

S^^^:.''^^^;-S:QB^- ^ ^ "^' '" '"^^^^^^tf^^^ day jSIontrcal liter- 
-— ^^^s^^^^^'.^^^^^^^^ J, A grand ball 

collected all that 

The Victoria Eailway Tubular Bridcrelrom St. Lambert. i • i j. i 

•^ was bright and 

beautiful in the city to grectthohcir-apparcnt of their sovereign, 
and night Avas turned into day by the blaze of illuminations and 
fireworks that lit up the dark mountain side in the background, 
or flashed over the broad current of the St. Lawrence as it sped 
muimuringly oceanward. 

25 . From jNIontreal the Prince of Wales proceeded to Ottawa, 
and there, on the 1st of September, in the presence of the 
Didve of Newcastle, the governor-general, many of the notaljili- 
ties of Canada, and a most brilliant suite, he laid the foundation- 
stone of the new Parliament buildings, and sul)sequently shot 
the timber slides of the Chaudiere on the usual lumberman's 
crib. Proceeding up the Ottawa to Arnprior, he crossed the 
country by carriage and railway to Brockville, where he arrived 
at night, and a most brilliant reception awaited him. This loyal 
little town greeted him with a grand firemen's torchlight pro- 
cession, with triumphal arches, fireworks, an illumination, and 
bonfires among the islands in the river. Embarking on board 
the " Kingston," the royal party proceeded next day westward 
through the beautiful lake of the Thousand Islands. But no 
landing was made either at Kingston or Belleville, in consequence 
of the Oranc'e societies of those iieiofhborhoods insistinsf on 
receiving his royal highness with party flags, processions, and 
music. Some unpleasantness, in connection with the Orange 
body, awaited him at Toronto, where a triumphal arch on his 
proposed route was decorated with its flags and emblems, and 
beneath which he declined to pass. This raised a storm of 
Orauge indignation against his advisers, and the Duke of New- 
castle and the governor-general were burned in ef^gy on Col- 
borne street. His progress through the western peninsula 
evoked no additional demonstrations of this nature, and the 



EXGLAXD, AXD THE UNITED STATES. 269 

most joyous welcome everywhere awaited him. His royal 
highness tinally passed, at Windsor, out of Canada into the 
United States, to be exceedingly well received in all the great 
northern cities visited by him, and particularly at Boston ; but 
to have his passage southward stopped at Richmond, the gate- 
way of the slave States, by insulting demonstrations on the part 
of its mob. 

20. ^Meanwhile, a dark storm-cloud had been gathering over 
the United States, and the ultimate breaking of which exercised 
no small influence on the progress of Canada. Wearied at 
length with the domination of the slave States, the masses of 
the North broke away from the Democratic party, always 
southern in its instincts, and elected xVbraham Lincoln, au 
abolitionist lawyer of Illinois, to the presidency of the Union. 
Great, accordingly, was the ferment at the South, the 
politicians of which had virtually governed the country for a 
long period of time. But the loss of power and emoluments of 
place was even of less consequence with them than the danger 
to slaver}', which they supposed resulted from the election of 
Lincoln. South Carolina was the first to secede from the 
Union, and at Charleston a small federal force in Fort Sumter 
was virtualh' besieged as the new year came on, and an attemi)t 
to relieve it with troops and stores, l)y the steamship " Star of 
the West," was repelled by the cannon of the insurgent State. 
Wild was the alarm that now spread through the Northern 
States, and in Maine a strong movement was made for annex- 
ation to Canada. The government of the Confederate States 
was speedily organized, and, as spring approached, North and 
South were alike busily preparing for the coming struggle. 

27. Parliament assembled at Quebec on the IGth of March, 
1861. The governor-generars speech alluded to the abundant 
harvest of the preceding year, the acknowledgTiient by the 
cpieen of the loyal manner in which her son had been mainly 
received in this country, and to the fact that he had been advised 
to represent to her majesty's government that a writ issued by 
the English Court of Queen's Bench had been served in this 
province, and the expediency of preventing by legislation any 
conflict of judicial jurisdiction. Canada was jealous of its 
privileges and authority. The debate on the address developed 
a good deal of ill-feeling, relative to the unpleasant occurrences 
which had taken place during the visit of the Prince of "\^'ales. 
It was stated that the Orangemen had been insulted, in not being 
permitted to give a loyal welcome to his royal highness after 



270 IIISTOEY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

their own fiishion ; that the Freemasons had been treated with 
disrespect, in not being allowed to lay the corner-stone of the 
pnl)lic buildings at Ottawa, after having been invited to do so ; 
and that indignities had also been otFcred to the Presbj'terian 
and Methodist bodies, in connection Avith the presentation of 
their addresses. Amendments to the address embodying these 
complainings were, however, voted down by large majorities; 
and a motion, by Mr. John Sandfield JNIacdonald, asserting that 
ministers should adhere to the double-majority principle, — a 
favorite idea with him, — was lost on a division of sixty-five to 
forty-six. A direct motion of " want of confidence " in the 
cabinet was also lost by a vote of sixty-two to forty-nine ; and 
on the 22d terminated six days of weary and profitless dcl)ating 
on the address. Still, it was quite evident that the position of 
ministers was becoming weaker. 

28. After the Easter recess, a portion of the returns of the 
census, taken at the close of the last year, was laid before the 
house. These documents showed a large increase in the popu- 
lation of the countr3^ In 1841 the population of Upper Canada 
was four hundred and sixty-five thousand three hundred and 
seventy-five ; in 1851, nine hundred and fifty-two thousand and 
sixty-one ; while in 1861 it had reached one million three hun- 
dred and ninety-six thousand and ninety-one. On the other 
hand, the population of Lower Canada, in 1841, was six hundred 
and ninety thousand seven hundred and eighty-two ; in 1851, 
eight hundred and ninety thousand two hundred and sixty-one ; 
and in 1861 it stood at one million one hundred and ten thousand 
four hundred and forty-four. It will thus be seen that the 
population of all Canada, at the beginning of 1861, was two 
million five hundred and six thousand seven hundred and fifty- 
five. But the rate of increase had been much more rapid in 
the upper than in the lower province, and the number of its 
inhaliitants was now two hundred and eighty-five thousand four 
hundred and twenty-seven in excess of that of the latter. This 
circumstance gave new hope to the meml^ers of the reform 
party in the house, and they eagerly turned to the question of 
representation by population, as the sure panacea for the evils 
of French domination. They were strongly opposed by the 
ministerial party, the premier making, on the 19th of April, a 
forcible speech in opposition to the motion embodying their 
views, and were again beaten. But the principle they now 
advocated was subsequently interwoven Avith the Imperial Act 
of Confederation, and Avhich gave nineteen new members to 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 271 

Upper Canada. The long debates had consumed much of the 
time of the Assembly, and this session drew towards its close 
"without having added any noticeable legislation to the statute- 
book. On the 8th of May Parliament Avas prorogued, and in 
a few weeks afterwards was dissolved, and the writs issued for 
a new election. The contest throughout Upper Canada was 
most vigorously conducted on both sides, and resulted in favor 
of the reform party. But its leader, Mv. Brown, lost much of 
his prestige, being beaten in Toronto by a majority of one 
hundred and ninety-one, owing to the union of the Orangemen 
and Roman Catholics against him ; while at the same time 
Cartier defeated Dorion, the Rouge leader, in Montreal east. 

29. Meanwhile, the troops of the belligerent States were 
marshalling themselves on the banks of the Potomac, for the 
conflict which could not now be very long deferred. Westward, 
at the fork of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers, a body of federal 
troops prevented supplies from reaching the Confederate States, 
while, at the same time, preparations were made to blockade 
their ports, and so narrow their resources seaward. This course 
was a virtual concession of the sovereign authority of these States 
to levy war, and led to the declaration of Lord John Russell, 
that the South must now be regarded as a cZe/acfo power, and be 
accorded belligerent rights. On the 13th of May the queen's 
proclamation was issued, warning all her subjects to maintain a 
strict neutrality, and afibrd aid to neither of the contending 
parties. On the 21st of July the battle of Bull Run took place, 
and the first deep torrent of blood shed in a fratricidal war, 
during the progress of which fully fifty thousand Canadians, 
despite the queen's proclamation, entered the Northern army as 
volunteers, while comparatively few in number attached them- 
selves to the forces of the Confederate States. - 

30. But, while the attention of the people of Canada was 
eagerly turned to the progress of the bitter civil conflict now 
waged in a neighboring nation §o intimately connected with 
them by commercial relations and a coilimon language and 
lineage, their country peacefully reposed in the shadow of the 
British flag, and presented, after its election contests had ter- 
minated, but few domestic events to record. On the 28th of 
August William Lyon Mackenzie's wearisome life came to a 
close, and the troubled spirit sank to rest. Pecuniary em- 
barrassment had thrown a gloom over the last days of his exist- 
ence. Destitute of income, with fliiling health, and deeply in 
debt, he had been living on credit, and his bills matured without 



272 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

time bringing the means to pay them. The confidence in the 
future which had lit up his path during the darkest periods of 
his life failed him at last, and he ceased even to hope. There 
remained for the erring, though honest patriot but one course 
now open, — to lie down and die, to quit a world which had no 
longer a solitary ray of genial sunshine for him. During his 
last illness he refused all medicine, would comply with no 
physician's directions, and the grave soon closed over all his 
troubles. In October Sir Edmund Head ceased to be governor- 
general of Canada. On the 2od of that month his successor, 
Lord Monck, arrived at Quebec, and on the following day was 
duly sworn in. On the same day Sir Edmund departed for 
Boston, en route for England. As already seen, he also had 
become unpopular with a portion of the community, and had 
recently been made the subject of a large amount of censure. 
Like his predecessor, Lord Elgin, he hastened to leave, without 
regret, a country which had been fatal to the reputations of so 
many governors-general, and who had unwisely identified them- 
selves with one or the other of its political parties. 



CHAPTER XXin. 

THE TROVINCE OF CANADA, FROM 1840 TO l?,Q7 — {continued) . 

THE AD-MINISTRATION OF LORD MONCK CONFEDERATION. 

1. In 1861 Charles Stanley Monck succeeded to the govern- 
ment of Canada. He was born in Ireland, in 1819. He entered 
Parliament, with an English constituency, in 18r)2, and in 1848 
he was appointed lord of the treasury by the Palmerston 
administration, holding the office for two years. ^E[e had 
scarcely taken the reins of government of Canada firmly in his 
hands when what was known as the Trent difficulty arose 
between Great Britain and the United States, and which, for a 
time, threatened to involve them in a war, in which Canada, 
had it occurred, must have acted a most important part. Capt. 
Wilkes, of the United States steamship "Jacinto," took by 

^ I wish to repeat here, what has been said in a previous note, that this and the pre- 
cedin<r chapter are taken substantially from the work of Mr. John MacMuUen, an author 
whose labors in collecting and preserving the materials of Canadian history cannot be too 
highly appreciated. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 273 

force, ou the 9tli of November, 1861, the Confederate commis- 
sioners, Mason and Slidell, from the British mail steamer 
''Trent," plying between Vera Cruz and Southampton, in utter 
defiance of the law of nations, and the rights of a neutral 
power. Hitherto a strong sympathy for the United States 
had existed in Canada, and the secession of the South was 
regarded with little favor by the great bulk of its people ; but 
the Trent dilficulty, and the idle boastings and threats of the 
more unscrupulous portion of the American press, now rapidly 
changed the current of public sentiment, and turned it largely 
into indifference, or in the direction of the weaker party, — the 
South. As the year drew towards its close the whole country 
was rapidly springing to arms, in expectation of immediate 
hostilities. Volunteer companies were being formed in every 
direction, steps were taken to organize the militia force, and 
steamship after steamship, freighted with troops and munitions 
of war, arrived from the mother country. While the excite- 
ment produced by these occurrences culminated to its meridian, 
Canada was thrown into the saddest mourning by the intelli- 
gence that Prince Albert, the amiable and high-minded consort 
of the queen, had, on the 15th of December, expired of gastric 
fever. Deep, indeed, w^as the sympathy of the people of Canada 
for their bereaved sovereign, who had long since won their 
hearts by her virtuous and prudent conduct, and by the true 
womanly instincts of her nature. While this country still 
mourned the irreparable loss which the empire had sustained, 
the war-cloud passed away ; Mason and Slidell were surrendered 
to the British government, and were speedily on their way to 
Europe. 

2. The beginning of the year 1862 was not distinguished by 
any domestic events of importance. Parliament met at Quebec 
on the 21st of March, and Lord Monck came down in no small 
state to open its proceedings. A large portion of the inhab- 
itants were out of doors to witness his progress, and fifteen 
hundred volunteers and a force of regular troops lined both 
sides of the streets through which he passed. The garrison 
guns, manned by the royal artillery, thundered forth their 
salute from Durham terrace, far and wide, over land and 
water ; a battery of volunteer artillery repeated the welcome 
elsewhere ; while the hearty cheers of the dense masses of spec- 
tators hailed, in a still more acceptable fashion, the appearance 
of their new governor-general. At the chamber of the legisla- 
tive council a brilliant assemblage of military and civil digni- 



274 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

taries greeted his arrival, and gave additional lustre to the 
ancient ceremonies of the occasion. 

3. Parliament having been opened with the due formalities, 
the Assembly proceeded to elect Joseph E. Turcotte as their 
speaker, by a majority of thirteen- over the opposition candi- 
date, Mr. Sicotte ; and tfiat duty performed, his excellency 
made a second visit to the house, to deliver his "opening" 
speech. It paid a fitting tribute to the memory of the deceased 
23rince consort ; stated how the feeling of loyalty exhibited by 
the Canadian people during the recent Trent difficulty had been 
graciously recognized in the queen's speech on the opening of 
the Imperial Parliament ; and congratulated the Legislature on 
the abundant* harvest of the i^ receding year,Xnd the satisfactory 
condition of trade, notwithstanding the partial derangement to 
which it had been subjected by the civil war still raging in the 
United States. It farther set forth that papers would be laid 
before it showing that the imperial government entertained no 
objection to the establishment of a system of free commercial 
intercourse between the different provinces of British North 
America, and that during the recess a commission had sat to 
consider the present condition of the militia force, with a view 
to improving its organization and efficiency, and the report of 
which would be submitted for its approval. 

4. The debate on the address was of that lengthy character 
now so common in the Canadian Legislature, and displayed the 
discordant elements of which the two great parties in the house 
were composed. Reformers declared for and against represen- 
tation by population, — the prominent feature of the wearisome 
debate ; and Sidney Smith voted against his colleagues of the 
government on the same question. But ministers tided it 
safely through the prolonged discussion, which terminated on 
the 5th of April, defeated the opposition on a test vote by a 
majority of seventeen, and the public business was at length 
proceeded with. On the 7th an address of condolence to the 
queen, on the death of the prince consort, was agreed to in the 
upper chamber, of which Sir Allan M'Nal) was now the 
speaker, and sent down to the Assembly for its concurrence. 
It was at once adopted, and a joint committee of both houses 
presented it to Lord Monck, for transmission to her majesty. 

5. As the session progressed, it became more and more 
evident that the position of the cabinet was daily becoming 
weaker. Mr. Patton had been defeated on returning to his 
constituents for reelection, — a circumstance which damaged 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



275 



ministers to some extent. A long term of place* and power, 
in a constitutional system of government, of itself naturally 
weakens a ministry ; and not a few gross abuses, which had 
arisen in some of the public departments, relative to siipplies 
of stationery and other matters, were now used l)y the opposi- 
tion to enfeeble still more the position of the cabinet. Added 
to these causes of dissatisfaction, the constant annual deficiency 
in the revenue was ascribed to the financial policy of ministers, 
the cry raised against whom received, as the session progressed, 
additional volume from the fiscal changes proposed by Mr. Gait, 
and which found as little favor with the conservative, as they 
did with the reform press. On the 30th of j\Ia}', when the 
second reading of the Militia Bill, a government measure, was 
moved, ministers were abandoned by several of their Lower 
Canadian supporters, and defeated on a vote of sixty-one to 
fifty-four. Their resignation speedily followed, and the Assembly 
adjourned, on the 23d, to permjt of the formation of a new ad- 
ministration. Three days afterwards it again assembled, to learn, 
from Lewis Wallbridge, of Belleville, that a cal)inet had been 
formed under the leadership of John Sandfieid Macdonald and 
L. V. Sicotte. The same gentleman briefly announced the. 
policy of the new administration to be, the restoration of the 
double-majority principle , 
in all matters locally affect- 
ino' either section of the 
province ; the readjust- 
ment of the representation 
of LTpper and Lower Can- 
ada r e s p e c t i V e 1 }' ; an 
amended militia law ; and 
a revision of the tariff", so 
as to produce increased 
revenue, and aiford pro- 
tection to manufacturing 
industries ; an insolvent 
debtors' act ; a system of 
retrenchment in the public 
expenditure ; the main- 
tenance of her majesty's 
decision on the seat-of-gov- 
ernment question ; and an 

investigation into certain alleged abuses in connection with the 
construction of the parhamentary buildings at Ottawa. This 




276 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

announcement of their proposed policy was received with a 
good deal of favor by all classes of the community, and the 
leaders of the late cabinet now declared their intention to give 
ministers a fair trial, and throw no obstacles in the way of useful 
legislation. On the other hand, the Upper Canada section of 
the iiew administration was fiercely assailed by j\Ir. Brown, in 
the " Globe," for not making representation by population, with- 
out any regard to a dividing line between Upper and Lower 
Canada, a cabinet question, and for having, like their predeces- 
sors, surrendered themselves to French domination. Such Avas 
the condition of public aflairs when the session terminated on 
the 9th of June, after the transaction of only a very limited 
amount of business. A short amendment to the Militia Act 
had rendered it much more efficient, and showed that the 
country was prepared to incur a larger amount of expenditure 
for preparation against foreign attack. The closing speech of 
the governor-general was brief, but courteous ; and he still stood 
well with both parties. 

6. The defeat of the Macdonald-Cartier administration on 
its Militia Bill awoke a most unpleasant feeling in England ; and 
the cry was raised there that the Canadian people were unwilling 
to defend themselves, and desired to throw the burden on the 
mother country ; and Lord Palmerston angrily declared, in the 
Imperial Parliament, that the home government had done as 
much to defend the Canadians as it intended to do, and that it 
rested with themselves to do the remainder, or disgrace the race 
from whence they sprung. At a pul)lic dinner in JNIontreal, 
Lord Monck reechoed, in a subdued form, the warning tones of 
the British premier ; told his hearers plainly that England alone 
could not protect them in the event of war with the United 
States, and that from among themselves must arise the great 
armies of defence in the event of an attack. But the imperial 
premier and the governor-general erred alike in accepting the 
circumstances of the downfall of an unpopular administration as 
the act of the people of Canada, and Avho, in every time of 
peril, have invariably proved that they are not the degenerate 
ofispring of a gallant ancestry. 

7. The second week in August witnessed the death of Sir 
Allan M'Nab, at his residence near Hamilton, and who had 
survived his reform contemporary, William Hamilton jNlerritt, 
but a brief space. And thus the links, which bound the present 
to the past generation of Canada, were being sundered one by 
one, by the inexorable hand of time. In September the 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 27 T 

governor-general paid his first visit to Upper Canada, to open the 
Provincial Exhibition at Toronto, and increased his prestige, in 
no small degree, by his frank bearing and popular manners. His 
return to the seat of government was distinguished by the resig- 
nation of Mr. Dorion, the provincial secretary, on the ground 
that he could not support the Intercolonial Kailway policy of his 
colleagues. 

8. The imposition of a high rate of duty by the Canadian 
Parliament had already produced in the United States a good 
deal of agitatioa adverse to the Reciprocity Treaty. The Legis- 
lature of the State of New York had adopted a long series of 
resolutions unfavorable to its renewal, which were transmitted 
to Congress, and there referred to the Committee on Commerce ; 
and, as time progressed, this agitation received additional force 
from the heavy internal taxation entailed by the war. Towards 
the close of the year Canada began to gain enormously by the 
operations of this treaty. The progress of hostilities was 
already narrowing down the resources of the Northern States, 
and farm stock rose to an unusually high value. As the cheapest 
market, Canada was now inundated with American speculators ; 
and horse-dealers, especially, spread themselves in every direc- 
tion over the country, to secure remounts for the United States 
cavalry and artillery. Never had the agricultural community 
such a market before, and they eagerly availed themselves of 
the opportunity to dispose of their surplus stocks to the best 
advantage. In this way a very large amount of money came 
into their possession, and which the great majority of the re- 
cipients prudently used to discharge claims against their proper- 
ties, and release themselves otherwise from debt. The frugal 
and simple liabits of a rough backwoods population had long 
since disappeared in most parts of the country, ox-teams and 
homespun clothing were no longer prized as heretofore, and a 
fondness for dress, expensive carriages, and luxurious living 
had deeply plunged a large portion of the rural population into 
debt. To discharge obligations incurred to store-keepers 
money was borrowed on mortgage, and many unfortunate and 
imprudent people, in this way, lost properties which it had cost 
a long period of hard toil to create. But, having acquired 
wisdom by the most bitter experience, farmers now eagerl}'" 
availed themselves of this season of great prosperity to dis- 
charge every claim against them, and to bring their transactions 
much nearer to a general cash basis than was possible with them 
at any former period. The prosperous years which now followed 



278 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

were distinguished by an unusually small amount of litigation, 
and in evqry direction lawyers of even superior abilities could 
hardly make a living by their profession ; while money-lenders 
no longer reaped the abundant harvest they had hitherto 
enjoyed. This gratifying condition of affiiirs tended also to a 
diminution of crime, but the volume of which had always been 
very limited in this country. The war had already absorbed 
the more unquiet spirits of the population, and the ample 
employment and high wages which prevailed led, in addition, 
to light calendars in the courts of justice. 

9. Parliament assembled at Quebec on the 13th of Feb- 
ruary, 1863, and the legislative council, having elected 
Alexander Campbell as their speaker, in the room of the late 
Sir Allen M'Nab, the governor-general delivered his speech. 
He congratulated the chambers on the loyal spirit evinced 
throughout the country in the enrolment of numerous volunteer 
companies, and the formation of drill associations, and sub- 
mitted a programme for legislation, based on the previously 
announced policy of the cabinet. He added that commissioners 
had l)ecn appointed to inquire into the state of every branch of 
the pu])lic service, with a view of retrenchment and economy; 
and gratefully alluded to the spontaneous contributions which 
had Howu so freely from the province to relieve th« distress in 
the manufacturing districts of Great Britain, caused by the 
great advance in the value of raw cotton, and by the other dis- 
turbances to the usual currents of trade resulting from the 
American civil war. 

10. But the policy of the ministry, as avowed in his excel- 
lency's speech, was by no means satisfactory to all the reform 
members of the house, and Matthew Crooks Cameron moved 
an amendment to the address, asserting the principle of repre- 
sentation ])y population ; while, from the conservative benches, 
John lljllyard Cameron gave notice of a motion which, 
without disturbing the existing number of members, would 
increase the representation of Upper Canada. The great bulk 
of the western reformers, and some conservatives, declared for 
the amendment ; but the French Canadians to a man voted with 
the ministry, as well as John A. Macdonald, and it was lost on a 
vote of sixty-four to forty-two ; while John Ilillyard Cameron's 
motion fared still worse, and was negatived by a division of 
eighty-one to thirty-three. Ministers were safe for the time 
being, but now stood on dangerous ground, and might, at any 
adverse moment, be defeated. It was quite evident that public 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



279 




opinion in Upper Canada was already far ill advance of the 
double-majority expedient, and a large section of the reform 
press loudly demanded the representative position which its 
greatly increased popula- 
tion and wealth entitled 
that province to fill. The 
lapse of time and the prog- 
ress of the country had 
thus created a political dif- 
ficulty of constantly in- 
creasing magnitude, and 
which a new constitution- 
al revolution could alone 
remedy. Nor did Mr. 
Brown long remain with- 
out an opportunity to again 
advocate his vieAvs on this 
point in the Assembly. 
The elevation of Dr. Con- 
nor, a member of the cab- 
inet, to a judgeship in the 
Court of Queen's Bench, 

created a vacancy in the representation of the South Riding of 
Oxford, and for which, early in March, Mr. Brown was re- 
turned ; but, for some unexplained cause, a month elapsed 
before he took his seat in the house. Most probably he felt 
disinclined to embarrass ministers by pressing his peculiar 
views on their notice at this juncture. 

11. The intelligence of the approaching marriage of the 
Pri;ice of Wales to the beautiful daughter of the King of Den- 
mark, softened, for a brief space, the asperities of party; and 
the 10th of JNlarch, announced as the wedding-day, witnessed 
the adjournment of the legislative council as a mark of respect 
for his royal highness. But this auspicious event produced 
only a temporary suspension of the political storm in the 
Assembly. Scott's separate school bill which conceded some 
privileges to the Roman Catholics, awoke anew the hostilities 
of the Avestern reformers, thirty of whom now voted against 
it, — a circumstance which increased still more the dislike of 
the Lower Canadians to cooperate with them. Nor was the 
statement of the financial minister, Mr. Howland, calculated 
to raise the confidence of the house in the administration. 
Despite the large increase of revenue taxation in the preceding 



280 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

session, the deficit in the public exchequer was still- quite 
serious, and showed that, on this most important point, ministers 
had proved unequal to the redemption of their promises. Mr. 
John A. Macdonald now saw, with his accustomed shrewdness, 
that the correct time had come for adverse action, and, on the 
Ist of May, moved a direct vote of want of confidence in the 
administration. A vigorous debate ensued which lasted for four 
days, and when a division took place the government was de- 
feated by a majority of five, the vote standing sixty-four 
for the motion, and fifty-nine against it. Ministers had 
now either to resign or appeal to the country. They chose the 
latter course, and on the 12thof May the governor-general, in a 
brief speech, prorogued Parliament, with a view, as he said, to 
its immediate dissolution. 

12. Aside from the excitement caused by a general election 
midsummer produced no domestic events of importance. In 
the United States the army conscription, now being relentlessly 
enforced, caused the greatest alarm among their people, many 
of whom fled acros the borders into Canada ; while in the city 
of New York the dissatisfaction broke out into furious riots, 
which produced robberies, burnings, and much bloodshed, and 
were only suppressed with the utmost difficulty. The refugees 
from the conscription did not prove themselves by any 
means a desirable addition to our population. Some of them 
engaged in the illegal occupation of procuring Canadians to 
swell the ranks of the very army they had themselves declined 
to join ; while others had recourse to still more questionable 
methods to acquire a living. But while the progress of the war 
added to the intensity of the cotton famine in the mother country, 
and produced the greatest suffering among its patient opera- 
tives, it deepened the current of Canadian prosi^erity, and con- 
tinued to create a large market for our surplus jDroduce. 

13. The new Parliament assembled on the 13th of August. 
Ulric J. Tessier was chosen speaker of the legislative council, 
and Lewis Wallbridge, government candidate, speaker of 
the Assembly, on a vote of sixty-six to fifty-eight. The 
governor-general's speech was exceedingly non-committal, 
and did not devolop any new ideas of public policy. When 
the address came up for discussion, ministers were hotly 
assailed on the score of the recent changes in the cabinet. 
In the course of the <lebate the premier stated that the 
policy of the reconstructed cabinet was not the same as that of 
its immediate predecessor. The double-majority principle was 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 281 

not now to be insisted on, and representation by population 
should be left an open question. His former colleague, Mr. 
Sicotte, bitterly assailed him for having thus shifting his ground, 
and charged hiiii Avith unfair dealing towards himself in the 
formation of his present cabinet ; while the explanations of Mr, 
Foley and Mr. M'Gee, as to the causes of their compelled 
resignations, were also very hostile. For full fourteen days 
did the debate on the address drag its tedious length along ; 
and on the 28th, when the final division was taken, sixty-three 
voted for ministers and sixty against it. Foley, Sicotte, and 
M'Gee, all late colleagues of the premier, voted with the 
opposition ; and it was now evident that the position of the 
cabinet was an excessively weak one. A discussion which 
ensued, on the expediency of having another removal of the 
seat of government to Toronto, in the interval of the comple- 
tion of the public buildings at Ottawa, still farther damaged 
ministers (wdio opposed the change very properly) Avith western 
members. Nor was the annual budget submitted by Mr. 
Howland, now finance minister, very reassuring. He stated 
that the total expenditure for the year would be fifteen million 
one hundred and nineteen thousand two hundred dollars, in- 
cluding four million two hundred and ninety-four thousand dollars 
for the redemption of the seignorial tenure bonds, and leaving 
ten million nine hundred and eleven thousand and ninety dollars 
as the ordinary outlay. The gross debt of Canada, funded and 
floating, was estimated by the minister at seventy million 
dollars, and the annual interest, which the country had to pay, 
at five million five hundred and sixty-three thousand two 
hundred and sixty-three dollars. The total deficit in the 
revenue since 1857 amounted to twelve million dollars, and he 
stated that some means must now be devised to produce an 
additional sum of two million dollars annually, in order to 
make the public income equal to the expenditure. The finan- 
cial dilficulties thus developed were not a little increased by 
the eagerness of the public men and press of England to have 
Canada place itself in a still better position for defence. 

14. But, small as the government majority was, it held 
solidly together, and carried it safely through the session, 
which terminated on the 15th of October. To accomplish this 
object, however, ministers had to trim their course with the 
greatest care, and introduce no important measures which 
might provoke defeat. AVith a war-cloud lining the horizon, 
winch might at any time break with disastrous force, the 



282 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

Southern Confederacy giving evidence of exhaustion, which 
must ere long leave the victors at leisure to turn their arms in 
thi§ direction, and Congress authorizing the President of the 
United States to give the necessary notice to terminate the 
Reciprocity Treaty, never was a strong government more re- 
quired in Canada than at this juncture. The constitution was 
now fairly on its trial, a crisis was approaching in the afiairs 
of this country, and how the difficulties of the situation were 
to be met and overcome became a matter of no small anxiety 
with many thinking people. 

15. The Legislature assembled at Quebec on the 19th of 
February, 1864. The governor-general's speech informed the 
public that he had taken steps for the better organization of 
the militia force and volunteers, under the act of the preceding 
session ; that the period Avas approaching when notice might 
be given to terminate the Reciprocity Treaty, by either party 
thereto ; and that he had devoted his best attention to the great 
interests involved. He farther stated that the Ottawa build- 
ings had been prosecuted with much diligence during the pre- 
ceding summer, and a fresh contract entered into for ocean 
steamship mail service. The debate on the address weakened 
the confidence in the ministry of several of its supporters. 
The opposition, however, did not think it advisable to move 
any amendment, and waited for a more favorable opportunity 
to assail the cabinet. A motion made by Mr. Brown on the 
14th, having reference to representation by population, still 
more embarrassed ministers. Mr. S. Macdonald now vainly 
essayed to strengthen his cabinet, and with that view made 
overtures to leaders of the Lower Canada opposition. But 
these being rejected, and Mr. Brown having openly stated in 
the house that, circumstanced as ministers were, they had 
better resign, they succumbed to the force of adverse circum- 
stances, and surrendered their portfolios into the hands of the 
governor-general. Mr. Blair, a member of the upper house, 
and provincial secretary in the late administration, was now 
sent for by his excellency to form a new government ; but this 
gentleman failing to succeed. Sir E. P. Tache, a Lower Cana- 
dian conservative, was next requested to undertake the difficult 
task. He at first declined the proffered honor, but finally, at 
the solicitations of Mr. Cartier and other friends, consented to 
form a new administration. He succeeded, and when the house 
assembled on the 30th of March, Mr. Cauchon informed it 
that a cabinet had been completed, with Sir E. P. Tache, as 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



283 




receiver-general and minister of militia, at its head. Its pro- 
posed policy was announced to be the placing of the militia 
force on the best possible footing, "without increasing the ex- 
isting expense, the main- 
tenance of the Reciprocity 
Treaty, a connncrcial union 
with the lower or seaboard 
provinces, the readjust- 
ment of the canal tolls so 
as to secure western trade, 
the permanent establish- 
ment of the seat of gov- 
ernment at Ottawa, de- 
partmental and fiscal re- 
form, and the question of 
representation to remain 
an open one. Tlie house 
adjourned until tlie 3d of 
May, to enable the mem- 
bers of the new cabinet to 
complete their arrange- 
ments, and to go to tlieir 

constituents for reelection. They were all again returned, with 
the exception of Mr. Foley, who was beaten in the North 
Riding of Waterloo by a Mr. Bowman. 

16. But ministers , on resuming their seats , soon found that the 
house was not disposed to treat either them 'or their policy with 
much forbearance. The factious spirit of the Assembly was 
now thoroughly aroused, and, wholly forgetful of the great 
public interests at stake, it appeared to be the sole aim of each 
of the rival parties to defeat their opponents, and secure them- 
selves in power. Accordingly, on the 13th of Maj^, a motion 
of non-confidence in ministers, in consequence of their having 
advised the issuing of an order in council reducing the canal 
tolls, was moved by the opposition. The vote stood sixty-four to 
sixty-two, the narrow majority of two being on the side of 
ministers. On the 14th of June a fresh adverse motion, based 
on a Giovernment loan of one hundred thousand dollars to 
Montreal, in 1859, was made, and, Messrs. Rankin and Dunkin 
now deserting the cabinet, it was defeated by a majority of two, 
the vote standing sixty to fifty-eight. 

17. Faction had now literally exhausted itself, the public 
affairs of the country were completely at a stand-still, and for 



284 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

a moment it seemed as if coustitutional government had finally 
ended in a total failure, llepeated changes of cabinets had 
been tried, dissolutions of Parliament had been resorted to, 
every constitutional specific had been tested ; but all alike had 
failed to unravel the Gordiau knot which party spirit had tied 
so firmly round the destinies of this province, and the public 
stood aofhast at this state of things, while the lovers of British 
constitutional government regarded the extraordinary situation 
with unlimited dismay. Lord Sydenham's Act of Union had 
already fulfilled its mission, and from the progress of the 
country had arisen a condition of afiairs which imperatively 
pointed to a fresh constitutional revolution as the only solution 
of the difiiculties that surrounded it. Nor could the double- 
majority principle be now resorted to as even a temporary 
specific ; while, on the othei- hand, the Lower Canadians would 
never agree, under existing circumstances, to concede a repre- 
sentative preponderance to the sister province. The leading 
minds of the country naturally applied themselves, at this 
juncture, to discover some mode of escape from the dangerous 
difiiculties of the public situation. One course, and one course 
only, promised relief; and that was the adoption of the "joint- 
authority" scheme of Mr. Brown, so frequently voted down in 
Parliament, so long opposed, and so mercilessly ridiculed by 
friend and foe alike. The night had passed away, and the 
morning dawn of success at length lit up an agitation based 
upon correct political principles, and which at one time seemed 
as if it never could be successful, and only worthy of being 
classed as the idle dream of an impracticable theorist. 

18. Fortunately for the country ministers now proved them- 
selves equal to the grave occasion which had arisen. No time 
was lost in communicating with Mr. Brown, who had already 
expressed himself in favor of a settlement, by compromises, of 
the constitutional difiiculty which existed, with a view to some 
arrangement and mutual understanding, which would permit 
the business of the country to be carried on. That gentleman 
had now his revenge in the most ample manner. Mr. John A. 
Macdonald, the man who had snatched the falling sceptre of 
Francis Hincks from his hand ten years before ; who had so 
constantly traversed all his plans and neutralized his policy ; 
who had been his perpetual opponent at every point, and the 
shafts of whose keen wit had so frequently transfixed his 
"joint-authority " idea, — that man was now prepared to adopt 
the views he had so often covered with sarcasm, and to aid in 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



28( 



carrying them into practical effect. And Mr. Brown's reform 
friends, so restive under his leadership (hitherto one of agita- 
tion), and Avhich had never led tliem into power, or secured to 
them the emoluments of place, so intensely sighed for by the 
Canadian professional politician, who had so recently tried to 
stand without him, and failed, — these friends must now bend 
to him as the true master of the situation, after all, and virtu- 
ally admit his policy to have been all along that which the 
country really required. 

19. The negotiations which now ensued between the rival 
political leaders speedily resulted in a satisfactory under- 
standing, based upon a project of confederation of all tlie 
British North American provinces, on the federal principle, 
and leaving to each province the settlement, by local legislation, 
of its own municipal and peculiar affairs. In order to ensure 
the satisfactory arrangement of all the details of the project 
Mr. Brown was to have three seats in the cabinet placed at his 
disposal. He accordingly became president of the council, 
William McDougall, provincial secretary, and Oliver 'Mo watt, 
postmaster-general. Thus a strong coalition government was 
formed to carry out the newly accepted policy of confederation, 
g,ud, although extreme par- 
ties, here and there, grum- 
bled at these arrange- 
ments, the great body of 
the people, of all shades 
of opinion, were thankful 
that the dansrerous crisis 
had been safely passed, 
gladly accepted the situ- 
ation, and calmly find con- 
fidently awaited the prog- 
ress of coming events. 
Never before had a coali- 
tion been more opportune. 
It rendered the govern- 
ment of the country again 
respectal)le, elevated it 
above the accidents of Mic- 
tion, and enabled it to wield 




the administrative power with that firmness and decision so requi- 
site during the trying and critical period which speedily ensued. 
It would indeed seem as if a special Providence was controlling 



286 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

matters for its own wise purposes, and evoking results from 
the ambitions and passions of partisan leaders directly tending 
to elevate this country to a position of greater eminence and 
to increased usefulness among the nations. The curtain fell on 
the parliamentary drama on the 30th of June. But faction, 
even yet, was not wholly extinct, and soon found a prominent 
exponent in Matthew Crooks Cameron, who now contested 
North Ontario with Secretary AIcDougall, and beat him by one 
hundred votes. The latter was not, however, left without a 
seat in the Legislature. He was subsequently returned by the 
thoughtful Scotch settlers of North Lanark, who ga^^e him a 
large majority over a Mr. Rosamond, and whose fathci-, an Irish 
conservative of the straitest school, showed his appreciation 
of the coalition, by voting for the secretary, and against his 
own son. 

20. Very speedily did the progress of events develop the 
necessity of a strong government. Hitherto the long frontier 
of Canada had been wrapped in the most profound quiet ; and 
while thrs country afforded a ready and safe asylum to Southern 
refugees, no obstacles were thrown in the way of the North in 
the purchase of remounts for its cavalry and of other supplies. 
Nor, unless in very glaring cases, which could not possibly be 
overlooked, were any active steps taken to prevent recruits for 
its armies from passing out of Canada in no inconsiderable 
numbers. But this_ condition of affairs was now about to be 
very materially altered. Sorely pressed in all their coasts, 
without the remotest prospect of European intervention in their 
behalf, the Confederate authorities essayed, in the month of 
September, to effect a diversion in their favor from the Cana- 
dian frontier ; to menace the defenceless borders of the Northern 
States, and thus, if possible, to cause a war between them and 
Great Britain. In pursuance of this policy, two American 
steamboats, the "Philo Parsons" and "Island Queen," were 
seized on Lake Erie by confederate desperadoes, some of whom 
had been refugees in this country, with the immediate design 
of releasing a number of Southern prisoners, conlined on John- 
son's Island, and of clestroj-ing the lake shipping. But beyond 
the seizure of these steamboats, their partial plunder, and the 
great alarm occasioned for the moment, no other injury was in- 
flicted. .Scarcely, however, had the excitement which these 
acts produced died away when, on the 19th of October, a bod}' 
of twenty-three Southern refugees made a raid on the little 
Vermont town of St. Albans, close to the Canadian frontier ; 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 287 

shot an American citizen there ; robbed its banks of two hundred 
and thirty-three thousand dollars in current funds, and then 
hastily retreated across the border. The Canadian authorities 
promptly arrested fourteen of these marauders, who were 
committed for safe-keeping to the Montreal jail. Nevertheless, 
our relations with the United States were now much disturbed, 
and it became necessary to incur a large outla}^, in policing the 
frontier with thirty volunteer companies, to prevent the re- 
currence of future raids of a similar character. It was also 
deemed expedient to pass a stringent act for the prevention of 
outrages on the borders, and to enable the governor-general to 
order disorderly aliens to leave the province, or, in case of 
their refusal to do so, to commit them to prison during 
pleasure. 

21. These unpleasant circumstances, and others of a kindred 
character, caused the Canadian people to long earnestly for the 
conclusion of the war. But the reelection of Lincoln to the 
presidency in November plainly established that the Northern 
people had determined to prolong the struggle until the total 
subjugation of the South ensued. A great change had taken 
place in the sentiments of the Northern States daring the prog- 
ress of the war. At first the preservation of the Union, with- 
out any reference to slavery, was the sole object aimed at. 
But, rendered desperate by repeated defeat and disaster, and 
coming to regard slavery as the true cause of all their difficulties, 
its total extinction was finally aimed at ; and to this task, by the 
reelection of Lincoln, did the Northern people apply themselves. 
On the other hand, the South was equally resolute in the pres-' 
ervation of slavery, and of founding an empire having that 
institution for its basis. So the struggle must be prolonged 
until the total defeat of one or the other of the belligerents, and 
it only remained for Canadians to fold their arms and look 
patiently on. Meanwhile, the bitter feelings provoked by the 
Lake Erie outrage and the St. Albans raid, as well as by the 
expression of sympathy for the South on the part of many of 
the Canadian journals, reacted most unfavorably on this country, 
and materially tended, in conjunction with other adverse causes, 
to the speedy abrogation of the Eeciprocity Treaty. The 
hurried and indecent discharge of the St. Albans raiders by 
Judge Coursol, of Montreal, in December, and the illegal sur- 
render to them of ninety thousand dollars of the stolen money 
(which the government had subsequently to repay), by the 
police-chief of that city, still further complicated matters, and 



288 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

intensified the unpleasant relations now subsisting with the 
United States. 

22. While these events were transpiring in this country, the 
project of a confederation of the North American provinces had 
attracted the attention of many of the leading minds of England, 
and was very generally regarded as the true mode of escape 
from the ditiiculties which now enveloped Canada, both as re- 
garded the question of defence, looming up at this juncture into 
great importance, and the legislative situation. The idea of a 
union between themselves had already been agitated in the 
maritime provinces, and a meeting held during the summer, to 
arrange the preliminaries, was informally attended by a portion 
of the Canadian cabinet. At their suggestion an enlarged proj- 
ect of confederation was readily entertained, and which, under 
the pressure of circumstances, speedily assumed a tangible 
shape. The governor-general opened the preliminary negotia- 
tions with the several lieutenant-governors, and, on the 4th of 
October, thirty-three representatives, of all shades of politics, 
from the various British North American provinces, assembled 
in council at Quebec, to arrange the terms of the proposed 
union. They proceeded to business methodically and cautiously, 
the representatives of each province having a close eye to its 
local benefits, and seeking to place its peculiar advantages in 
the best possible light. 

23. Parliament met at Quebec on the 19th of January, 
1865. The governor-general's speech congratulated the cham- 
bers on the " general contentment and prosperity of the peo- 
ple of the province, and the continuance of the inestimable 
blessing of peace." He alluded also to the outrages on the 
American frontier, the perpetrators of which had sought refuge 
in Canada, rendering a detective police system necessary ; to 
the calling out a portion of the volunteer force and its prompt 
response ; and asked for larger powers to deal with persons 
who violated the right of asylum in this country. The progress 
of confederation was briefly yet pointedly limned out, and the 
Legislature informed that her majesty's Secretary of State was 
]:>repared to introduce a measure into the Imperial Parliament, 
to give efiect to the acts of union which might be passed by the 
different local Legislatures. It remained with the public men 
of British North America to say Avhether the vast tract of 
country which they inhabited should be consolidated into a 
State, combining within its area all the elements of national 
greatness, providing for the security of its component parts, 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 289 

and contributing to the strength and stability of the emi)ire ; or 
whether the several provinces of which it was constituted 
should remain in their present fragmentary and isolated condi- 
tion, comparatively powerless for nnitual aid, and. incapable of 
undertaking their proper share of imperial responsibility. His 
excellency closed his speech by fervently praying, that in the 
discussion of an issue of such moment their minds might be 
guided to such conclusions as would redound to the honor of 
their sovereign, the welfare of her subjects, and their own repu- 
tation as patriots and statesmen. 

24. On the 23d the Assembly proceeded to take into con- 
sideration the address and reply, when two Lower Canadians, 
Dorion, of Hochelaga, and Laframboise, moved, in amendment 
thereto, that the house did not desire to disturb existing politi- 
cal relations, nor to create a new nationality. Only four Upper 
Canadians supported this amendment, and the number in favor 
of which was twenty -five in all, Avhile sixty-four voted against 
it. On the 12th paragraph of the address, asserting the feasi- 
bility and desirability of union, being put to vote, there were 
seventy yeas and only seventeen nays, not one member of 
British origin being among the latter. Another division fol- 
lowed with like result ; and the same day the address was fully 
concurred in. What a profound relief was this from the weari- 
some partisan debates, which had of late years characterized 
the moving of addresses ! So far as Canada was concerned 
confederation was now an accomplished fact ; and the subsequent 
long debates on this cj[uestion, which distinguished this session, 
were mere matters of form, and designed to give members an 
opportunity of expressing their individual opinions relative 
thereto, to be recorded in a "blue book" of one thousand and 
thirty-two octavo pages, of little value to the historian, and no 
small expense to the country. The question was finally disposed 
of ])y a motion asking an imperial measure of confederation, 
which the house endorsed by a vote of ninety-one to thirty- 
three. On the 18th of March, the necessary business having 
all been completed, Parliament was prorogued, and ministers 
hastened to put themselves into communication with the home 
government, by a deputation, on the matter of confederation. 

25. AVhile a revolution, rendered necessary by the course 
of events and national progress, was thus being peacefully 
accomplished in Canada, in accordance with the expansive 
character of the unwritten British constitution, the dark drama 
of blood destined to reconstruct the ivritten constitution of the 



290 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



United States, with slavery forever blotted out from their 
escuteheon, ^vus rapidly drawing to a close. Before Petersl>urg 
the silent and iniiexihle Grant still patiently marshalled his 
legions, waiting for the long-looked-for op])ortunity to crush the 
gallant army of Lee, and whose distant rear was already 
threatened by the victorious forces of Sherman, sweeping down 
in a desolating current, forty miles in width, through the very 
heart of the South. In the last days of March the western 
army of invasion was not two hundred miles from liichmond, 
and the dark shadow of final defeat was already settling down 
on the slave empire of the Confederate States. 

2G. This year brought with it sad misfortune for the ancient 
city of Qucljcc. Its narrow streets and frequently recurring 
wooden buildhigs had repeatedly made it the scene of terrible 
tires, and on the 23d of June a new conilagration rendered three 
thousand people homeless, and destroyed property to the extent 
of one million dollars. For the last time the Legislature of 
United Canada assembled there, on the 8th of August, to hear 
the report of the deputation to England relative to confederation, 
and to complete the important business left unfinished at its last 
session. The premier. Sir E. P. Tache, had died a few days 
before, and Sir Karcissus Belleau, a member of the upper house, 
became his successor ; so the public business moved tranquilly 
forward. The session was an unusually short one, the large 
majority now wielded by ministers enabling them to push their 
measures through the house very quickly. Beyond the act im- 
j)osing a stamp-duty on notes and bills it developed no very 

novel feature in legislation, and 
was chiefly distinguished for the 
large number of private measures 
which were enacted. The de- 
spatches and papers laid before the 
chamber stated the willingness of 
the home government to aid in 
forwarding confederation, and that 
it had already instructed the Brit- 
ish minister at Washington, Sir 
Frederick Bruce, to give all prac- 
ticable assistance to the Canadian 
cabinet to procure tlie renewal of 
the Reciprocity Treaty, and which 
must expire in the ensuing month of !^Iarch. The death of the 
imperial premier, Lord Palmerstou, in October, produced no 




SIR NARCISSUS BELLEAU. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 291 

alteration as regarded Canadian afiairs, and the policy of his 
cabinet tonchiiig them was fully adopted by its successor. 
Towards the latter part of the year the removal at length of 
the seat of government to OttaAva, and the rumors of a Fenian 
invasion from the United States, were the only events of note. 

27. As the period drew near for the termination of the 
Reciprocity Treaty Canada presented a most unusual spectacle. 
American dealers in farm-stock and produce spread themselves 
in every direction over the country, already largely denuded 
of salable articles, and purchased everything buyable. The 
various international ferries were choked up continually with 
vast droves of cattle, sheep, and horses, as though a hostile 
army had harried all Canada ; Avhile the conveying capacity of 
the railwa^^s, in every direction, was taxed to its utmost limits 
to meet the needs of produce-buyers at this juncture. Under 
the provisions of the Reciprocity Treaty the international com- 
merce between the United States and this country had swelled 
to the enormous sum of seventy million dollars per annum. Its 
termination produced a great disturbance of trade, and the 
New England States, now so accustomed to the cheap markets 
of Canada, lying almost at their doors, were largely the suf- 
ferers, and had to look elsewhere for supplies for their manu- 
facturing population. 

28. The calmness with which the people of Canada regarded 
the abrogation of the Reciprocity Treaty puzzled not a little 
some of the leading politicians of the United States, wdio had 
so vainly fancied that it must lead them to clamor for a union 
with themselves. But, having so totally failed in this direction, 
they did not hesitate to resort to more questionable means to 
accomplish their purpose ; and to this policy, as well as to 
the desire to secure the Irish vote, may now be traced the 
countenance so openly given to the Feninn associations in many 
of the principal towns in the Northern States. The readiness 
with Avhich military supplies of all descriptions were procured, 
and the large numl>crs of this society, which made no secret of its 
hostile intentions, led many Americans to indulge in the chi- 
merical idea that it was equal to the conquest of this country, or at 
least to so harass its people that they would hasten to seek 
repose under the flag of the United States. Early in March 
the plan of Sweeny, the Fenian generalissimo, was published. 
It was l)ased on a series of combined movements, and the 17th 
of March, St. Patrick's day, designated as the tinie when hos- 
tile operations would commence. The Canadian government 



292 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

at once responded to the threat of invasion by calling out ten 
thousand volunteers, our citizen soldiers, and never was a call 
more promptly met. In less than twenty-four hours fourteen 
thousand men sprang to arms to defend their country. It was 
a gallant spectacle, the best possible answer to the sneers of those 
who would depreciate the military spirit of Canada, and raised 
it greatly in the estimation of the mother-land. But the 17th 
of March passed avv^ay, no Fenian advance took place, and the 
proposed invasion exhausted itself, in the month of April, in a 
silly demonstration by a few badly-armed men, of the O'Ma- 
hony faction, against the New Brunswick frontier. In the 
middle of May all danger having apparently passed away, 
several of the volunteer corps, called out for active duty, were 
permitted to return home. 

29. As summer advanced it Ijecame evident that the Fenian 
organization in the United States was of much larger propor- 
tions than had been deemed possible. It was divided into two 
sections. One of these, led by O'Mahony and Stephens, made 
Ireland the sole objective point of its preparations ; the other, 
and much the more formidable, led by Roberts and Sweeny, 
proposed to conquer Canada in the first place, and make it the 
base of subsequent operations against Great Britain. However 
chimerical this project might be, it found some tavor among public 
men in the United States, and both the republican and demo- 
cratic parties, from President Johnson downwards, coquetted 
with the Fenian leaders, in order to secure the Irish electoral 
vote. Hitherto that vote had almost invaria])ly gone with the 
democratic or pro-slavery part}^ ; l)ut the republican leaders 
now boldly bid for it, and hoped, by a quasi countenance of 
Fenian operations, to efiect their object. An indistinct idea 
was also entertained by them that possibly this course might 
ultimately promote, in some way, the union of Canada with the 
United States, obliterate the Alal)ama claims, and gratify their 
dislike of Great Britain, intensified by the aid and sympathy 
extended by so many of its subjects to the South during the 
war. Under these circumstances the Fenian leaders were 
permitted, almost without restraint, to make hostile prepara- 
tions. Fenian circles, or societies, were numerous in all the 
cities and towns of the United States, and formed the media 
through which arms and munitions of war, now so cheap and 
abundant, and money were collected. Aspiring politicians, and 
other sympathizers, contributed large sums to the invasion 
fund, while a number of disciplined men, discharged from the 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 293 

American army, without settled emploj^mcnt, and unfitted for 
the ordinary routine of civil life by their military antecedents, 
Avere only too ready to engage in any enterprijse that presented a 
prospect of pay and plunder. Nor were experienced leaders 
wanting to direct this dangerous class of men in their designs 
upon Canada. Sweeny, an officer of some skill, had resigned 
his commission in the American regular service to take the 
supreme control, and with him were associated a number of 
well-trained militar}' men, who had held commands, either at 
the North or South, during the late war. 

30. About the middle of May, and with the expectation of 
being joined by many presumed disaffected Canadians, the 
Fenian leaders commenced to make })reparations, on a large 
scale, for a descent on this country. Three lines of operations 
had been determined on : one from Chicago and other western 
cities on the Lake Huron coast ; another from Buffalo and 
Eochester, across the Niagara frontier ; and a third, and the 
most formidable of all, from the cities of the Atlantic sea- 
board, to organize in the vicinity of Ogdensburg. The force 
to assemble at the latter point was destined to menace Ottawa, 
only fifty miles distant, to capture Prescott, and operate along 
the exposed frontier in the direction of the eastern townships. 
But this system of combined attack was beyond the capacity of 
the Fenian resources. It rendered necessary a simultaneous 
movement of their diflcrent columns of invasion, and a failure 
in this respect must largely tend to neutralize every prospect 
of ultimate success. A few gunboats on the lakes and rivers 
would have been invaluable at this juncture ; but, through the 
remissness of the home and colonial authorities, these had not 
been provided. Nor for some cause were adequate prepara- 
tions adopted to resist the attack which, during the last week 
in May, it was quite evident would shortly bo made. The city 
of Buffalo, situated at the foot of Lake Erie, now swarmed 
with Fenian bands, which had collected from all quarters. 
Before daylight on Friday, the 1st of June, a body of these, 
about twelve hundred strong, under the command of Gen. 
O'Neil, crossed at Blackrock, three miles down the Niagara 
river, at this point about half a mile wide, and established them- 
selves unopposed on Canadian soil. Their first step was to take 
possession of the ruins of Fort Erie, a short distance above their 
point of landing, and of the depot of the Buffalo and Lake 
Huron Eailway close by ; but fortunately not before all the 
rolUng stock had been safely removed. Beyond taking all the 



294 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

provisions and horses they could lay hands on no violence was 
oilercd to the inhabitants, and in some instances guards were 
furnished by order of O Neil for their special protection. Dur- 
ing the day an American war vessel, the "Michigan," patrolled 
the river, with the ostensible object of preventing the crossing 
of reinforcements. Small boats, nevertheless, plied back and 
forth continually, conveying not only supplies, but recruits to 
the Fenian camp, no hindrance of any consequence being at- 
tempted. But whatever might have been the expectations of 
the Fenians as to a Canadian rising in their favor, they were 
almost AvhoUy disappointed. Not half a dozen of the inhab- 
itants joined them altogether ; and their only hope of aid lay in 
reinforcements from the American side of the river, which 
reached them during the day to the extent of some three hun- 
dred men. On Saturday morning O'Neil made a reconnois- 
sance, in force, down the Niagara, to conceal his true objective 
point. Then, rapidly retracing his steps, he left a guard at 
Fort Erie, to preserve his communication with Bulfalo, and 
moving in the direction of the Welland Canal , for about ten 
miles, took up a position in an elevated woodland, termed 
Limeridge, where a temporary breastwork was at once con- 
structed. 

3i. Meanwhile, the Canadian military authorities had been 
actively engaged in making preparations to drive this dangerous 
band of marauders from our soil. Volunteer corps were called 
out in every direction, and General Napier, commanding the 
Western District, instructed to adopt any measures he deemed 
necessary. During Friday the Queen's Own, a Toronto vol- 
unteer corps, composed of college students and other patriotic 
young men of that city, the 13th Hamilton Volunteers, and the 
York and Caledonia Volunteer companies, in all not quite nine 
hundred strong, and commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel Booker, 
a volunteer oliicer of no experience, w^ere despatched to Port 
Colborne, at the Lake Erie entrance of the ^V^elland Canal, to 
cover that important WT>rk. Late on Friday evening a column 
of eighteen hundred troops, composed of seven hundred and 
lifty regulars, and the rest of volunteers, with a battery of 
artillery, all under the command of Colonel Peacock, took post 
two miles above Niagara Fa'ls, at the classic village of Chip- 
pewa. On Saturday morning very little was known about the 
whereabouts of the enemy, no proper system of scouts having 
been organized. 0"Neil was still sup[)osed to be in the vicinity 
of Fort Erie, and the design Avas that Booker's force should 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 295 

unite with that under Peacock, and attack him there. In pui-- 
suance of this phin Booker moved downwards from Port 
Colborne, at an early hour, six miles by railway and three on 
foot, and at nine A.M. unexpectedly encountered CNeil's out- 
posts at Limeridge. Had he been an officer of experience he 
would have now withdrawn his force leisurely, and connnuni- 
cated with Peacock ; but, instead of doing this, the Queen's 
Own were thrown forward in skirmishing order, and very 
quickly and gallantly drove back the advanced line of O'Neil 
on his main body. Had this advance been properly supported, 
and the Avhole force, new to the battle-tield as it was, been 
handled with skill, the enemy would unquestionably have been 
beaten ; but, just at the critical moment, an improper order to 
form square, produced by the sight of a few mounted Fenians, 
led to immediate confusion, increased by some of the advanced 
skirmish line getting out of amnuniition, and retiring on their 
supports. The panic so common to raw and badly-led troops 
now ensued, and the whole force was speedily in full retreat. 
The loss, of the vohmteers in this action was one officer and six 
men killed, and four officers and nineteen men wounded, some 
quite dangerously. The Fenian loss has never been correctly 
ascertained, as the possession of the battle-iield enabled them 
to bury their dead without notice ; but it was certainly larger 
than that of the volunteers. 

32. O'Neil had not the heart to pursue this temporary advan- 
tage, and commenced, soon after the action, a retreat on Fort 
Erie. He arrived there, about two P.J\I., to tind the post in pos- 
session of a force of seventy volunteers, under the command of 
Lieutenant-Colonel Dennis, who had meanwhile arrived in a 
tug-boat from Port Colborne, and captured sixty prisoners, 
which he stowed away in the hold of the vessel. The tug-boat 
had also rendered efficient service in patrolling the river. A 
brief action immediately ensued, which necessarily ended dis- 
astrously for the little body of volunteers, thirteen of whom 
were wounded, some ])adly, and forty made prisoners. But 
they fought stoutly, and inflicted a loss on the enemy of live 
killed and quite a number wounded. 

33. AVorn out with marching and iighting, the Fenians be- 
gan to understand that campaigning in Canada was not the 
holiday alfair they had anticipated ; and after night had set in 
many of them stole down to the river, and crossed to the 
American shore in small boats. Meanwhile, their friends in 
Buffalo were makins: the most strenuous exertions to reinforce 



29G HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

them ; and towards midnight a tug, towing two canal-boats, 
hiden with four hundred well-armed men, and abundant sup- 
plies, left the harbor for Fort Erie ; while the lower part of the 
city swarmed with armed sympathizers, and the American 
authorities were powerless to interfere. But O'Neil and his 
officers had already given up every hope of success, and all 
they now desired was to escape in safety from the attack which 
daylight must bring with it from Peacock's column, lying on its 
arms a few miles distant. A small boat carried the order from 
O'Neil, to the officer commanding the reinforcements, to return 
to Bufi'alo, and to send the tug and canal-boats to take otf his 
force from Fort Erie. This order reached the reinforcing 
party when about midway in the river, was obej^ed, and shortly 
after one o'clock on the morning of Sunday, the 3d, the bulk of 
the Fenian force, to the number of fully nine hundred, without 
even drawing in their pickets, stole on board the boats sent for 
them, and were speedily on their way to the American shore. 
Before they could land, however, they were intercepted by the 
United States armed propeller "Harrison," compelled to sur- 
render, and were soon anchored under the guns of the war- 
steamer " Michigan." The rest of the Fenians endeavored to 
cross as best they could, some even, in their extremity, pulling 
the planks from the wharves, and pushing out into the current 
upon them. Many also escaped in small l)oats sent over by 
their friends, while the remainder, who were probably about 
two hundred in number, hid themselves in the vicinity, or 
skulked oft' into the bush. The prisoners they had captured 
were all abandoned at Fort Erie, as well as most of their dead 
and wounded ; and when Colonel Peacock came up, on Sunday 
morning, he found he had nothing to do beyond arresting the 
straggling Fenians still lingering in the neighborhood, and who 
were sent to Toronto jail. And thus ingloriously terminated 
the Fenian invasion of the Niagara frontier. Their New York 
leaders sought to conceal their chagrin at its ill-success by 
describing it as a mere feint, designed to cover a more im- 
portant attack to be made elsewhere. 

34. During the earlier part of the ensuing week the 
American railways leading to Ogdensburg were freighted with 
large bodies of men for the attack on Prescott and subsequent 
advance to Ottawa. But the rapid massing of over two thou- 
sand voluntecn-s and regulars at the point menaced, and the 
placing of a British gunboat in the river, completely frustrated 
their projects. The Fenians now moved downwards to Ma- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 297 

lone,' as if an attack on Cornwall was contemplated; but a 
garrison there of three thousand troops and volunteers led 
them to abandon their designs against this point also. On the 
5th fully live thousand Fenians had congregated on the borders 
of the eastern townships, — a flourishing section of country', 
Avith nothing but a survej'ed line between it and the United 
States. But their period of unrestricted action had now passed 
away. The president could no longer ignore the representa- 
tions of the British minister at Washington, nor shut his eyes 
to the fact that war Avas being made on a friendly country from 
the United States, and issued a proclamation calling on the 
Fenians to disperse, and commit no overt acts ; Avhile General 
Meade, an honest and capable officer, Avas ordered to arrest 
their leaders and seize their snpplies. lA pursuance of .this 
order he speedily captured a large amount of arms and ammu- 
nition, Avhich arrived by raihvay at Ogdenslnirg, and prcA'ented 
the passage north of other reinforcements. On the 8th, 
hoAvever, a body of Fenians, tAA^o thousand strong, under the 
command of General Si)ear, crossed the frontier near St. A1-: 
bans, and marched three miles into the interior. There they 
formed a sort of camp, and from AA'hence they spread out over 
the country, plundering CA'cry description of property Avhicli 
could possibly be of any use to them. But the advance of 
troops against them caused them to retreat across the border, 
where Spear and other leaders Averc arrested by General 
Meade, and the masses of mischicA^ous men rapidly dispersed, 
the American government granting them free conveyance home 
on the dilferent railway lines. Thus terminated the Fenian 
invasion of the Canadian frontier. The actual injury to prop- 
erty it produced was not of much account, but the indirect loss 
sustained by this country — forty thousand A^olunteers being at 
one period under arms — AA^as very considerable. No new 
Fenian attempts AA^ere made against Canada, During the sum- 
mer, gunboats guarded the lake and riA^er approaches ; and 
troops and volunteers stationed at every assailable point 
demonstrated the folly of farther eflbrts at invasion. Canada 
bewailed the death of her college 3'ouths and young men of 
Toronto ; but their blood Avas not shed in vain. It speedily 
bore fruit ; and, in connection Avith the gallant manner in which 
a great volunteer force had sprung to arms, raised this country 
in the opinion of the world, and greatly stimulated the project 
of confederation. Deeply Avere the Canadians incensed at the 
wanton invasion of their borders, and the expense and annoy- 



298 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

ance they had been put to ; and the public voice now loudly 
demanded that the c:iptured Fenians should receive the most ex- 
treme punishment the law could award them. 

35. INIean while, on the 8th of June, the Legislature had 
assembled at Ottawa, in the new Parliament Ijuildings. In his 
opening speech the governor-general set forth, that immedi- 
ately after the termination of the last session he had, under 
instructions from the home government, convened a Council 
of Trade, which included representatives from the difierent 
provinces of British North America, and the proceedings of 
which would be laid before them. He urofcd that the tcrmina- 
tion of the Keciprocity Treaty with the United States rendered 
it necessary to seek new avenues of trade ; and stated that, 
with the consent of the imperial authorities, he had sent a dep- 
utation to the West Indies and Brazil, to ascertain the best 
mode of developing and extending commercial relations with 
those countries. The Fenian attack was also alluded to by his 
excellency, and, while he deplored the loss of life it caused, he 
paid a well-merited tribute to the prompt and galhmt spirit 
evinced by the volunteers of the country. To repress further 
outrages, and to enable improper persons to be summarily 
dealt with, he asked that the writ of habeas corpus bo tempo- 
rarily suspended. And while he congratulated the Chambers 
on the prosperity of the country, he informed them that the 
revenue of the past year had been largely in excess of the es- 
timates, and had enabled him, without inconvenience, to pro- 
vide for the heavy and unlooked-for expenditure entailed by 
the Fenian outrages. 

36. The abrogation of the Reciprocity Treaty rendered a 
new tariff a necessity, and Mr. Gait now introduced a bill into 
the Assembly embodying the desired alterations. It reduced the 
duty on the great bulk of imported goods five per cent., leaving 
the maximum rate fifteen per cent., admitted articles Avhich 
entered largely into the manufactures of the country free, and 
provided for the deficiency thus produced by increasing the 
impost on whiskey thirty cents a gallon. AYhile this tarifi' was 
a sensible relief to importers of foreign goods it largely 
stimulated the manufactures of the country ; and, Avith a few 
isolated interests excepted, gave very general satisfaction. 
Several other important measures became law during this 
session. The writ of habeas corpus was suspended for one 
year, the assessment law of Ui)per Canada amended, and its 
municipal law subjected to very important modifications, which 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 299 

rai&ed the franchise in towns, and effected other improvements 
well received by all classes. On the 3d of July ministers in- 
troduced resolutions into the Legislature defining the constitu- 
tions of Upper and Lower Canada, respectively, under the 
proposed measure of confederation, and which were all subse- 
quently embodied in the imperial bill. These proceedings were 
uneasily regarded by some of the leading politicians of the 
United States, who strongly deprecated the creation of a united 
power on their northern frontier, and an attempt was now made 
to sow the seeds of discord by the introduction of a bill into 
Congress, which provided for the admission of British North 
America into the American Union as four separate States, and 
the assumption of their public debt by the general government. 
This bill was read twice and referred to the Committee on 
Foreign Affairs. It totally failed, however, of its ol)ject. The 
day for annexation had forever departed, and j\Ir. Banks' con- 
gressional bill, alread}' described, was regarded l)y the Canadian 
people with the most supreme indifference and contempt, and as 
an insolent interference with the affairs of an independent 
country. Early in August Mr. Gait resigned, owing to com- 
plications which arose in connection with a school bill, giving 
larger privileges to the Protestant minority of Lower Canada. 
It failed to pass, and Mr. Gait, as representing that minority, 
deeming it treated with injustice, unexpectedly resigned, 
although avowing himself still prepared to support the general 
policy of the government. On the 15th of August the cabinet 
having carried all its measures with large majorities, and the 
public business having been fully completed, Parliament was 
prorogued. 

37. Towards the close of summer a most disastrous fire 
occurred at Quebec, by which all of the St. Poch sul)urb, and 
also much of the St. Saveur, were l)urned down. Only a few 
buildings were left staudinij in a district a mile long by about 
half a mile wide ; two thousand one hundred and nineteen 
houses, mostly belonging to the poorer classes, were destroyed, 
and over twenty thousand people left homeless. Great exertions 
were made for the relief of the sufferers in Canada, and large 
contributions were also made for the same object by the benevo- 
lent in the mother country'. But Quebec is not at all likely to 
recover from this disaster. Its commerce had already largely 
declined, and the scattering of its population, which now 
ensued, accelerated the decay which had so surely seized upon 
this ancient city. The Fenian trials took place at the October 



300 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

term, at Toronto, when many of the prisoners were discharged, 
the grand jury ignoring the bills against them. True bills, 
however, were found against a large number, several of Avhom 
were convicted and sentenced to death, but had their sentences 
afterwards commuted by the queen to a period of imprisonment 
in the provincial penitentiary. The calm and hrm attitude of 
our courts of justice during these trials, and the punctilious ob- 
servance of every form of civil law, constituted the best rebuke 
to the American politicians, from Seward downwards, who, by 
an indecent sympathy or interference on behalf of the criminals, 
pandered to their partisans with the view of securing their 
electoral support. 

Meanwhile, the great project of confederation continued to 
progress towards final consummation. The Legislatures of 
New Brunswick and Nova Scotia had already passed resolutions 
adopting the scheme, as did also the Legislature of Newfound- 
land. But, as regarded the latter, no steps were taken subse- 
c|uently to carry them into practical effect ; while the little 
Island of Prince Edward repudiated the action of its delegates at 
Quebec, and wholly declined to become a part of the proposed 
confederacy. All the necessary preliminaries having been dis- 
posed of, delegates from the provinces of Canada, Nova Scotia, 
and New Brunswick asseml)led at London, on the 4th of 
December, to arrange the final terms of the Act of Union to be 
submitted to the Imperial Parliament. Every question at issue 
having been satisfactorily adjusted, the colonial secretary, the 
Earl of Caernarvon, introduced, on the 7tli of Februarj^ 1867, 
the Confederation Bill into the House of Lords. On the 19th 
it had its second reading ; on the 22d it passed through com- 
mittee ; and on the 2Gth was read a third time, and sent down 
to the Commons. It was read a second time there on the 28th 
of February, and after a brief yet interesting debate the 
measure was agreed to without a division. It passed through 
a committee of the whole on the 4th of March, the proposed 
guaranty for an intercolonial railway loan being alone ol)jectcd 
to, but not pressed to a vote. On the 8th it was read a third 
time, and finally passed without debate. On the 12th a few 
judicious amendments, made by the Commons, were agreed to 
by the lords ; and on the 28th it received the royal assent, 
and became the law of the empire. On the following day Mr. 
Adderley introduced a bill into the Commons, to guarantee a 
loan of three million pounds sterling for the intercolonial rail- 
way, which was accepted by an overwhelming majority, and 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



301 



also duly passed in the House of Lords. On the 22d of May 
the work of legislation having been fully completed, and all the 
other arrangements made, her majesty was pleased to issue her 
royal proclamation, appointing the 1st of July as the day on 
which the Dominion of Canada should commence its existence, 
and nominating its seventy-two senators. The great project of 
confederation was at length finally and happily completed, and 
the morning voice of a new people w^as heard among the nations 
of the earth. The governors, both P'rench and English, w^ho 
have administered theafiairs in Canada from its earliest settle- 
ment to the confederation of 1867, with the dates of appointment, 
are as follows : — 



GOVERNORS OF CANADA DURING FRENCH RULE. 



Samuel de Champlain, Viceroy 1612 
Maro Antoine de Bras de fer 

de Chateaufort . . . 1635 
Chevalier de Montmagny . 1G36 
Clievalier d'Ailleboust de Cou- 

lono:e . . . 1618 and 1657 
Jean de Lauzon . . . 1651 
Charles de Lauson Charny . 1656 
Viscount de Voyer d'Argenson 1658 
Baron du Bois d'Avaugour . 1661 
Chevalier de Saffray Mesy . 1663 
Alexandre de Proville Tracy . 1663 
Chevalier de Courcelles . . 1665 



Count de Frontenac, 1672 and 1680 
Sieur de la Barre . . . 1682 
Marquis de Denonville . . 1685 
Clievalier de Callicres . . 1699 
Marquis de Vaudreuil . , 1703 
Marquis de Beauhai-nois . . 1726 
Count de Galissonniere . . 1717 
Marquis de la Jonquiere . . 1749 
Marquis du Quesne de Menne- 

ville 1752 

Marquis de Vaudreuil Cavag- 

nal 1755 



GOVERNORS OF CANADA DURING BRITISH RULE. 



1765 



1766 



Gen. James Murray, Gov. Gen. 
Paulus E. Irving, Esq,, Presi- 
dent .... 
Gen. Sir Guy Carlton (Lord 
Dorchester) , Governor-Gen- 
eral. 1766, 1774, 1776, and 1793 
Hector T. Cramahe, President. 1770 
Gen. Frederick Haldiraand . 1773 
Henry H:tmilton, Lieut.-Gov. . 1774 
Henry Hope, Esq., do. . . 1775 

LOWER CANADA. 

Col. Clarke, Lieut.-Gov. . 1791 

Gen. Robert Prescott . . 1796 
SirR. S. Milnes . . . 1799 
Hon. Thos. Dunn, President, 

1805 and 1811 
Sir J. II. Craig . . . 1807 
Sir George Pre vost . . .1811 



Sir G. Drummond, Administ. . 1815 
Gen. John Wilson, Administ. . 1816 
Sir J. Coape Sherbrooke . 1816 

Duke of Richmond . , . 1818 
Sir James Monk, President . 1819 
Sir Peregrine Maitland . . 1820 
Earl of Dalhousie . 1820 and 1825 
Sir F. N. Burton, Lieut.-Gov. 1824 
Sir James Kem, Administ. . 1828 
Lord Aylmer, Administrator . 1837 
Earl of Gosford . . . 1837 
Sir J. Colborne (Lord Seaton) . 1838 
Earl of Durham . . . 1838 
C. Poulett Tl4ompson (Lord 
Sydenham) .... 1839 

UPPER CANADA. 

Col. J. G. Simcoe, Lieut.-Gov. 1792 . 
Hon. Peter Russell, President. 1792 
Gen. Peter Hunter . . . 1799 



302 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



Hon. Alexander Grant, Pres't . 1805 
Hon. Francis Gore . 1806 and 1815 
Sir Isaac Brock, President . 1811 
Sir R. Hale Sheaffe, President 1813 
Baron F. de KottenlDurg, Pres. 1813 
Sir Gordon Drummond . .1813 
Sir George ^lurray . . . 1815 
Sir Frederick P. Robinson . 1815 
Hon. Sam. Smith, Adm. 1817 & 1820 
Sir Pereo;rine Maitland, 1818 & 1820 
Sir J. C'olborne (Lord Seaton) 1828 
Sir Francis B. Head . . 1836 
Sir George Arthur . . . 1838 



Gen. Sir William Eyre, Adm. 1857 
Lord Viscount Monck, 1861 and 1866 
Gen. Sir John Michel, Adm. . 1865 

PROVINCE OF CANADA. 

Baron Sydenham and Toronto. 1841 
Gen. Sir R. Jackson, Admin. . 1841 
Sir Charles Bagot . . . 1842 
Sir Charles (Baron) Metcalfe 1843 
Earl Catiicart .... 1845 
Ear) of Elgin and Kincardine. 1847 
Sir Edmund W. Head, 1854 and 1857 
Lord Monck .... 1864 



CHAPTER XXIV. 

ACADIA FROM 1748 TO 1784. 

BRITISH RULE IN NOVA SCOTIA FROM ITS COMMENCEMENT TO THE ESTABLISH- 
MENT OF THE PROVINCE OP NEW BRUNSWICK IN 1784. 



1. Ix a previous chapter we have traced events in the 
history of Acadia to the close of the French and Indian war, 
whicii had lost Canada to the French ; but in this connection, 
for the better understanding of the reader, Ave will go back of 
that date to the commencement of British rule in the province, 
not that we shall repeat anything already said, but that we 
may construct the history from l)oth a logical and chronological 
stand-[)oint. The Hon. Edward Cornwallis was the first Eng- 
lish governor of Xova Scotia who administered the govern- 
ment at Halifax. The English governors who preceded him 
were located at the ancient capital of Port Koyal, where the 
French governors also resided. The complete list, with the 
dates of appointment, of both classes are as follows : — 



1. FREN^CH GOVERNORS OF ACADIE AT PORT ROYAL. 



^L de Poutrincourt . 
Isaac de Uazillai ; 
Charles de Charnizay 
Charles de la Tour . 
M. Manival . . $ 



1604 
1633 
1647 
1652 

1685 



;M. de Villebon 
]\I. de Brouillon 
]\I. de Subercase 
Baron St. Castine 



1687 
1700 
1706 
1710 



2. ENGLISH GOVERNORS OF NOVA SCOTIA AT PORT ROYAL. 



CoL Vetch . . . .1710 
Francis Nicholson, Esq. . .1714 
Richard Philips, Esq. . . 1719 



Lawrence Armstrong, Esq. . 1725 
Paul Mascarene, Esq. . . 1740 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 303 



2. P. T. Hobson succeeded Cornwallis in 1752, and Charles 
Lawrence followed Hobson in 1754, and was followed by Hon. 
Robert Ivlonckton in 175(j. Jonathan Belcher was appointed 
to the government in 17G0, and was succeeded by Montague 
Wihnont in 17 63. The latter died in 1766, and was succeeded 
by Lieutenant-Governor Francklin, whose administration, like 
that which preceded him, was not remarkable for important 
events. The colony grew in prosperity, and a steady flow of 
of immigration swelled its population. Agriculture and lum- 
bering were the chief pursuits of the people, and, owing to the 
restraints of the English government, there was little or 
nothing done in manufacturing. It is a sorry fact that direct 
eflbrts were made by the English government to suppress any 
attempts at the home production of goods made in England ; 
and in 1768 Governor Francklin received instructions from the 
Secretary of State to prohibit the working of the Cape Breton 
coal mines, which was intended as a hindrance to home manu- 
factures and a protection to all that was English. This policy 
was continued many years, and even after the close of the 
American war for independence and the advent of the L^nion 
Empire Loyalists, Cape Breton was kept as if under lock and 
key; and, while grants of land were freely made in Nova 
Scotia, none were made in Cape Breton till 1784. 

3. This hurtful policy of the government is very clearly 
set forth in the letter from Governor Francklin to the Earl of 
Shelburne in 1766. He says : " The country people in general 
work up, for their own use, into stockings and a stulf called 
homespun what little wool their few sheep produce. The 
townships of Truro, Onslow, and Londonderry, consisting in 
the whole of six hundred and ninety-four men, women, and 
children, composed of people chieliy from the north of Ireland, 
make all their linen, and even some little to spare to the neigh- 
boring towns. This year they raised seven thousand live 
hundred and twenty-four pounds of flax, which will probably 
be Avorked up in their several families during the winter. I 
cannot omit representing to your lordship on this occasion that 
this government has at no time r/iveii encouragement to manufac- 
tures which could interfere with those of Great Britain; nor 
has there been the least appearance of any association of 
private persons for that purpose ; nor are there any persons 
who profess themselves weavers, so as to make it their employ- 
ment or business, but only work at it in their own families 
during the winter and other leisure time. It may be also 



304 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

proper to observe to your lordship that all the inhabitants of 
this colony are eniplo^'ed cither in husliantlry, fishing, or pro- 
viding lumber; and that all the manufactures for their clothing 
and the utensils for their farming and fishing are made in Great 
Britain." This extract reveals the condition of the province at 
that time with respect to local industries. 

4. In Massachusetts, when the excitement was raging over 
the Stamp Act, the House of Representatives of that province 
addressed a letter to the speaker of the house in Nova Scotia, 
in 1768, soliciting the sympathy and support of this province; 
but, by some good fortune, the letter fell into the hands of the 
governor, who, without submitting it to the Assembly, forwarded 
it to the Earl of Shelburne, and sent him therewith the most 
emphatic assurances of the loyalty of the government and people 
of Nova Scotia to the crown. The assurance was fully verified 
throughout the whole Revolution. Nova Scotia, ever loyal, 
stood firmly by her allegiance. 

5. When the war broke out in New England a proclamation 
was issued by Lieutenant-Governor Legge, who had been ap- 
pointed in 1773, in which, in the name of the crown, he forbade 
any correspondence with the rebels in New England. " And an 
order M^as afterwards issued by the Assembly prohibiting the 
exportation of arms, gunpowder, and ammunition, without the 
sanction of the governor. This was to prevent a traffic in those 
articles, which would undoubtedly htive sprung up, as they 
were very scarce with the Americans, and prices ranged very 
high. Indeed the communities of Cobequid and Cumberland 
did not respect the proclamation, and were punished by dis- 
franchisement. Nova Scotia did not escape altogether the 
horrors of war during the struggle in the neighboring colonies ; 
some of her settlements were ravaged by privateers, but no 
regular invasion took place, as was the case with Quebec. The 
Americans constantly had emissaries at work trying to sap the 
loyalty of the people, and they so far succeeded that a small 
demonstration was made by the people of Mongerville, and an 
attempt made to capture Fort Cumberland (formerly Fort 
Beausejour), but it was easily foiled. The people, however, 
seized a brig which was lying in the Missiquash river, and took 
it to Machias, where it was sold as a prize. The offence was 
overlooked l)y the government on the owner of the l)rig being 
indemnified for his loss. The people of Machias, who were 
empowered by the Massachusetts Assembly, fitted out a sloop, 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. o05 

commanded by Stephen Smith, a member of the Massachusetts 
Assem):>ly, and made a descent npon the river St. John, de- 
stroyed Fort Frederick, and burned the house and stores of 
Simmons' lishing-station. Tliey also captured a brig of one 
hundred and twenty tons, laden with supplies for the troops in 
Boston." 

• 6. The efforts of the Americans on the Nova Scotia Indians 
proved futile. The agents of the ^Massachusetts government 
succeeded in persuading the Micmacs to revolt, and the scheme 
was carried so far that the Indians entered into a treaty, 
" agreeing to send six hundred warriors to Washington's assist- 
ance ; and, in the spring of 1778, a large body of Micmacs and 
Milicetes appeared at the mouth of the Jemscg, and sent down 
the British tlag to Captain Studholme, who was at Fort Howe, 
which was equivalent to a declaration of war. Captain Stud- 
holme invited all the leading chiefs to attend a council at the 
fort, at which Mr. Franklin — then commissioner of Indian 
aifairs — was present, and the chiefs were so flattered, feasted, 
and loaded with presents that they l^rokc their promise to help 
Washinarton, and renewed their oath of allegiance to Georgo 
the Third. The following year they again threatened to break 
the peace ; but more flattery and presents pacified them, and 
the Indians of Nova Scotia have never made a hostile demon- 
stration since. Several of the numerous privateers which were 
fitted out in New England during the war combined in June, 
1782, to make an attack on Lunenburg. They landed in con- 
siderable force, and, compelling some of the inhabitants to pilot 
them to the town, plundered the settlement, and burnt the 
house of Mr. Crcii>:hton. This was the last hostile act of the 
war, as far as Nova Scotia was concerned, and the declaration 
of peace, in 1783, relieved the inhabitants from any farther 
fears of molestation by privateers. One of these privateers 
met a tragic end in the harbor of Lunenburg. She was chased 
by an English cruiser, and put into the harbor ; but, while 
coming to anchor, one of the officers — who had formerly been 
a seaman in the British navy — set fire to the magazine to 
escape the fate of a deserter, and, out of a crew of about one 
hundred, only six were saved." 

7. In 1776 Leffoje was recalled, but being a relative of the 
Earl of Dartmouth continued through that influence to hold 
the position of governor, and draw the pay for many years, the 
affairs of the province being administered by Lieutenant-Gov- 



306 HISTORY OF DOMINIOX OF CANADA, 

eruors Arbuthnot, Hughes, Hammond, Parr, and Fanning. 
Legge was a sharp man of business, very industrious, and was 
particularly active in correcting abuses in the expenditure of 
the pubhc funds. He made himself unpopular by examining 
into the past expenses of the province, which was then twenty 
thousand pounds in debt, and much excitement was caused by 
the fact that the books of the late treasurer could not be found. 
Legge was greatly disliked by the council, and that body was 
glad of his recall. 

8. The war had not been fairly over in the United States 
when the loyalists began to pour into Nova Scotia and New 
Brunswick. On the 18th of May, 1783, the ships bearing the 
first arrivals of these loyalists arrived at Navy Island, and 
during; the summer over five thousand had settled between 
Passtown and St. Ann's. The arrivals at Annapolis, Port 
Roseway, and other points, were also large, and in the fall of 
1783 the lieutenant-governor of Nova Scotia, in a letter to Lord 
North, estimated the whole number of loyalist emigrants at 
over thirteen thousand. They included all classes, — dis- 
banded soldiers, lawyers, clergymen, merchants, farmers, and 
mechanics. They brought nothing with them but a persistent 
energy, but that has proved a valuable acquisition for the 
maritime provinces. 

9. In 1783 Nova Scotia vindicated her intelligence by rer 
movins: some of the disal>ilities from Roman Catholics. The 
province, on this point, was in advance of the mother country. 
However, all of these disabilities were not removed until 1829. 
The new population from the American colonies was destined 
to Avork a considerable change in the political divisions of the 
country. At first they began to urge a larger representation for 
the districts which they occupied in the Legislature. Next they 
began to agitate for a division of the province, — a policy which 
the governor strongly opposed, and which gave rise to much 
ill feeling. Governor Parr went so far as to remove some of the 
loyalists to the opposite side of the Bay of Fundy ; but this did 
not help the difficulty, and the loyalists, who had many warm 
friends at the English court, urged a division so judiciously that 
the ministry yielded to their desires, and the province of New 
Brunswick was created, and received its name in honor of the 
House of Brunswick, the reigning family of England. The 
division took place in the fall of 1784, and Col. Thomas 
Carleton, brother of Lord Dorchester, was appointed the first 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 307 

governor of the new province. In the sauie year Cape Breton 
was made a separate province, and, as the ishind of St. John 
(Prince Edward Island) had been separated from Nova Scotia 
in 1770, there were now four separate governments in the 
maritime provinces. 



CHAPTER XXV. 

NOVA SCOTIA FROM 1784 TO 1837. 

CAPE BRETON — THE WAR OF 1812-H, FROM A NOVA SCOTIA STAND-POINT 

INTERNAL AFFAIRS OF THE PROVINCE. 

1. The province prospered well under the government 
of Edward Fanning, Esq., from 1783 to 1791. The event 
which caused most excitement and pleasure was the arrival, 
on the 4th of October, 1786, of H.R.H. Prince William 
Henry, afterwards William IV. The city dressed- herself 
in her best attire, and presented quite a festive appearance 
during his stay. In 1792 John Wentworth arrived at llaliflix 
as governor. His first act was to dissolve the Assembly which 
had sat for seven years. The new election passed off quietly. 
In May, 1794, H.R.H. Prince Edward, afterwards Duke of 
Kent, and the father of the present Queen Victoria, arrived at 
Halifax, where he remained for some time. But three years 
later a sad event occurred to cast a gloom over the province. 
H.M. frigate, "La Tribune," a fine ship of forty-two guns, was 
lost near Herring Cove, and out of the crew of two hundred 
and forty men, with some women and children, only eight 
lives were saved. Many of the unfortunate crew clung to the 
risrsrinsr for hours, but were all washed off or fell exhausted 
into the sea ; the first person who went to their rescue the next 
morning being a boy of thirteen, who went out alone in a 
skiff. 

2. Sir John Wentworth, who had been knighted since his 
arrival in the country, administered the affairs of the province, 
for sixteen years, in a very satisfactory manner. He was a 
strong supporter of the church, and through his influence King's 
College was established at Windsor, in the interests of the 
Church of England, all other denominations being exchided. 
He was an accomplished gentleman, and retired from the gov- 



308 • HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

ernment with the respect of all classes. He was succeeded l)y 
Sir George Provost, in 1808. The latter administered the 
affairs of the province nntil 1811, when he was called to the 
governorship of Canada. His term was not characterized by 
any very important events. He made a tour of the province, 
and expressed himself as highly pleased with the general prog- 
ress of the several industries. The governor laid the founda- 
tion stone of the provincial building in 1811, and in doing so 
he said, "May the building which shall arise from this founda- 
tion perpetuate the loyalty and liberality of Nova Scotia." It was 
now evident that a war would take place between England and 
the United States, and Sir George was transferred to the gov- 
ernment of Canada, his place in Nova Scotia being taken by 
Sir John Coape Sherbrooke. Sir John arrived at Halifax in 
October, 1811. In the following June Parliament was sum- 
moned to meet the demands of the war. Eight thousand 
pounds were voted for l)lock-houses, twenty-two thousand 
pounds for militia purposes, and provision was made for bor- 
rowing thirty thousand pounds for general defence. The war 
nearly doubled all kinds of trade in Halifax. It was from this 
port that the " Shannon," under Capt. Broke, sailed for Boston 
harbor, where she met and so completely demolished the 
"Chesapeake," of which an account has already been given. 
'Early in July, 1814, instructions were received to assume the 
offensive towards the State of Maine, lying near New Bruns- 
wick. Sir John Coape Sherbrooke sent Col. Pilkington, with 
a small force, to take possession of Moose Island, in Passama- 
quoddy Bay, which he did, the garrison of seven officers and 
eight men surrendering themselves prisoners of war. On 
the 26th of August Sir John sailed from Halifax, with a fleet 
under Admiral Griffiths, and, ascending the Penobscot river, 
established himself at Castine in September, without opposition, 
the enemy having destroyed the magazine and retreated. Sir 
John next sent six hundred troops, with a body of sailors, to 
capture the frigate "Adams," which had passed up to Hampden, 
where she was protected by some batteries. The towns of 
Machias and Bangor were taken, and the whole country from 
Penobscot to New Brunswick was brought under the British 
rule, where it remained till the end of the war. Sir John Sher- 
brooke was publicly thanked for this gallant service, and the 
Assembly voted one thousand pounds to buy him a service of 
plate. Nova Scotia flourished during the war in every de- 
partment of trade and commerce. Sir John was a popular 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 309 

governor, and just Ijeforc he retired the principal citizens of 
Halifax tendered him a grand banquet. He remained in office 
until 1816, wlien he was promoted to the governor-generalship 
of Canada. The afiairs of the province were administered 
temporarily by Maj.-Gen. Stracy Smith, until the arrival of the 
Earl of Dalhousie, who regularly succeeded Sir John Sher- 
brooke. 

3. The earl's administration was distinguished by the found- 
ing of Dalhousie college. The Legislature, on the recommenda- 
tion of the governor, granted thirty-nine thousand dollars, out 
of the Castinc fund, — a fund raised in Maine during the war, 
while the British held possession there. This grant was for the 
founding of a college in Halifax, in connection Avith the church 
of Scotland, but open to all denominations. In 1818 a part of 
the parade-ground was given for a site for the proposed college.. 
In 1819 the Legislature made a grant of eight thousand dollars 
for the erection of a new institution to be called Dalhousie col- 
lege. In 1820 the college was incorporated, and one year after 
another grant was made of four thousand dollars towards the 
erection of a building. Owing to a variety of causes, chief of 
which was the existence of several rival institutions in Nova 
Scotia, the new institution was not put in successful operation 
until 18G3, when various denominations united to support it. 
The general business affairs of the province fell into a condition 
of comparative stagnation after the war, and for a considerable 
period hard times prevailed ; l)ut the able administration of the 
Earl of Dalhousie did much to revive the la2:ging industries. 
The carl was i3romoted to the governor-generalship of Canada, 
and was succeeded by Lieutenant-General Sir James Kempt, 
G.C.B., in June, 1820.- 

4. Sir James opened his administration with an effort to 
annex Cape Breton to Nova Scotia, and we may therefore glance 
over the history of that island from its erection into a separate 
province, in 1784, to the reunion with Nova Scotia, in 1820 ; and 
in the first place Cape Breton did not enjoy a very successful 
career as a separate dependency. The council constantly 
quarrelled with itself and with the governor. INIajor Desbarres 
was the first governor appointed, and he arrived in 1784. Pre- 
viously Louisbourg had been the capital of the island ; but the 
new governor selected a site on Spanish river, and built a resi- 
dence there. He called the place Sydney, in honor of the 
colonial secretary of that day. This place has grown to be a 
considerable town, and was the capital of the island throughout 



310 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

its separate existence. In 1786 grants were made to loyalists, 
and the settlements greatly increased. Desbarres was succeeded 
by Colonel McCormick, but the administration of the latter was 
not attended with much success for the people of the island. 
When he retired the government was left with the president of 
the council or his successor. The immigration of Highlanders 
was an event in the history of Capo Breton, and with them 
came a declaration from the crown, in answer to internal dis- 
putes, uniting the island with Nova Scotia. The laws of Nova 
Scotia were extended over the province^ An attempt Avas made 
to reverse the decision of the crown ; but it proved unavailing, 
and the island has ever since remained, politically, a part of 
Nova Scotia. 

5. The death of the Right Eeverend Edmund Burke, first 
Eoman Catholic Bishop of Nova Scotia, in 1820, was lamented 
by all classes. He was one of the most enlightened and liberal- 
minded prelates of America. A very extensive and destructive 
bush fire occurred in September, 1820, which rendered about 
sixty families homeless and destitute. Sir James Kempt at 
once sent a government vessel laden with provisions to their 
relief, and subscriptions for their benefit were also taken up 
throughout the province. The administration of Sir James 
Kempt, which lasted eight years, was a mild and prosperous 
one, unmarked by any political agitation or any very noteworthy 
incidents. The great fire at Miramichi, in 1825, elicited deep 
and wide-spread sympathy throughout the province, and hand- 
some subscriptions for the sufferers were taken up in the dif- 
ferent districts. Sir James Kempt assiduously devoted himself 
to the consideration of the roads in the province, which were in 
a wretched condition, and made a tour through several districts 
for the purpose of personal inspection, the result of which was 
that at the session of Parliament in 1828 he recommelided many 
great and important changes in the manner of conducting the 
department, which suggestions were adopted by the house, to 
the subsequent great advantage of the province. Sir James 
Kempt left the province in August, 1828, and Hon. Mr. Yv^allace 
acted as administrator until the arrival of Sir Peregrine Mait- 
land, who had been transferred from Upper Canada. At the 
session of Parliament in 1824 a considerable commotion was 
created over the suspension of Mr. Barry, member for Shel- 
burne. The affair has been thus recorded : "In presenting a 
petition from some militia-men asking to be relieved from duty, 
he made use of some expressions for which he was censured by 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 311 

the house and ordered to apologize. This he refused to do, and 
was suspended. He then tried to get his constituents to 
petition the house to expel him, so that he might be reelected 
and escape having to apologize ; failing in this he wrote a violent 
letter against the committee which had reported on his case, and 
attacked its individual members. For this he was brought to 
the bar of the house, and ordered to be imprisoned for contempt 
during the l)alance of the session ; but he was rescued by a num- 
ber of his friends, and the members of the house hooted at and 
pelted with stones and snow until the military were called out 
and the mob dispersed. Mr. Barry was subsequently arrested 
and imprisoned for the remainder of the session, being also ex- 
pelled the house, lie was reelected for Shelburne, and took 
his seat quietly next session, when he was not disturbed. The 
Assembly showed more temper, however, with the editors of 
the "Acadian Recorder" and " Free Press," who published Mr. 
Barry's letters, and these gentlemen were called to the bar of 
the house on. the 8th of April, 1829, and reprimanded by the 
speaker, an attack on the liberty of the press which was resented 
by Mr. Joseph Howe, then of the " Nova Scotian," who said in 
his next issue : " The Assembly claims freedom of speech within 
its walls, and those to whom the press is entrusted claim it 
without ; and if the editors are Ijrought for otfences to the bar 
of the house, legislators may depend upon this, — that they will 
be brought individually and collectively to a bitter expiation 
before the bar of the public." 

6. The " quit-rents " question was a prominent one in Nova 
Scotia politics in these days, as in the adjacent provinces also. 
Now these quit-rents originated in this way : when Governor 
Laurence, in 1759, issued a proclamation with reference to 
the granting of public lands, it was stipulated that all such 
lands should be subject to a quit-rent of one shilling a year 
for every tifty acres, to be paid, after the expiration of ten 
years, to the receiver-general. Small as this tax was it was 
not paid, poverty being the general plea, and the collection 
was not enforced. In 1811 these taxes amounted to some 
forty thousand pounds, and an efibrt was made by the receiver- 
general to collect them ; but he had only got in a few hundred 
pounds when he was ordered to suspend the collection, on 
account of a petition to the home government from the House 
of Assembly. The matter then remained in abeyance until 
1827, when Lord Bathurst, Secretary of State for the colonies, 
issued an order remitting all back rents up to the 1st of January 



312 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

of that year, but ordering their collection in future, the pro- 
ceeds to be used for such local improvements as might please 
the judgment of his majesty. This plan, however, met with 
no success, and, in 1829, the Assembly gravely resolved: 
"That it does not appear to be the general wish of the inhabi- 
tants of the country that . . said quit-rents should be col- 
lected and enforced ; but, on the contrary, this house is induced 
to believe that the relinquishment of the claim would give 
general satisfaction to the people of Nova Scotia, as their long 
suspension had produced a belief among the inhabitants in 
general that they would never bo insisted on, and that the transfers 
of land had been, with scarcely an exception, made under that 
impression." In 1830 there was a dispute between the house 
and the council on the question of the tax on brandy. Soon 
after the temperance movement began in the province, and 
many societies were formed. Steam was introduced, ferries 
were established, and in 1831 a steamboat made regular trips 
between Pictou and New Glasgow. In October, 1832, the admin- 
istration of Sir Perregrine Maitland terminated, and Hon. T. N. 
Jeftery became administrator until the arrival of the new lieu- 
tenant-governor. Sir Colin Campbell. 

7. The short administration of Hon. T. N. Jefl'ery was full 
of events. He met Parliament, and beyond congratulating the 
house on the escape of the province from cholera, and on the 
union with Cape Breton, there was very little in the speech 
from the throne. Chief- Justice Blowers having resio;ned after 
thirty-five years' service, the administrator appointed Judge 
Haliburton to the vacancy, and recommended the house to grant 
Judge Blowers a pension. He also submitted a despatch from 
Lord Goderich recommending an increase in the salaries of 
judges, the pay not being considered sufficient. The chief- 
justice received eight hundred and fifty pounds per annum; 
puisne judges, five hundred and fifty pounds per annum ; asso- 
ciate judge, three hundred and sixty pounds ; master of the 
rolls, five hundred and forty pounds ; chief-justice inferior 
court Cape Breton, four hundred and fifty pounds ; the three 
judig'es of the eastern, western, and middle divisions, four 
hundred and five pounds each. The house in reply adopted an 
address to his majest}', stating the willingness of the house at 
all times to accede to his majesty's wislies, and to contribute 
all possible aid to the government, when required to do so, 
in the manner prescribed by the British constitution and the 
usages of the Imperial Parliament ; and prayed that the con- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 313 

trol of the casual and territorial revenue should be given to 
the house. A considerable portion of the time of the Assembly 
was taken up in discussing the currency question, and a bill 
passed to the effect that only coin or treasury-notes be received 
for provincial duties ; that all notes issued by banks or indi- 
viduals should be convertible into gold or silver on demand ; 
that the passing of any bills not so payable on demand should 
be prohibited. The bill passed the house, but was rejected by 
the council ; the members, however, expressing their concur- 
rence in the principle that all bank-notes should be convertible 
into specie on demand. This priuciple was shortly after 
adopted. On the occasion of the opening of the next session 
of Parliament, in 1834, the administrator sent down a message 
on the subject of the casual and territorial revenues, and the 
quit-rents, enclosing an extract from a letter of Mr. E. G. 
Stanley, Secretary of State for the colonies, in which he offered 
to surrender to the house the casual and territorial revenues in 
exchauge for a fixed civil list and the quit-rents, on adequate 
provision being made for the support and independence of the 
judicial estal)lishment of the province. The solicitor-general 
moved the adoption of a series of resolutions agreeing to the 
proposal, and a bill was introduced and read a first time. It 
provided for the salaries as follows : chief-justice, twelve hundred 
pounds, besides travelling expenses and certain fees ; atforney- 
general, six hundred pounds ; solicitor-general, two hundred 
pounds ; assistant judges of the Supreme Court, seven hundred 
pounds each ; master of the rolls, seven hundred and fifty 
pounds ; first justice of Cape Breton, four hundred and fifty 
pounds ; three justices of common pleas and presidents of 
sessions, three hundred and 'fifty pounds each ; the provincial 
secretaries, one thousand pounds, besides five hundred pounds 
as register, one hundred pounds as clerk of the council, and 
four hundred pounds for clerks and contingencies. The salary 
of the governor was fixed at twenty-five hundred jjounds. 
The publication of the salary-list caused great indignation, as 
it was held that the province was not in a position to stand so 
heavy a civil list, and petitions from several counties, as well 
as the city of Halifax, were presented against it, and farther 
consideration of the bill was laid over until next session. 
Nova Scotia at this time was almost as completely in the hands 
of a "Family Compact" as was Upper Canada. It controlled 
the executive and legislative councils, the meetings of which 
were held with closed doors, and was very tenacious of its 



314 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

rights and privileges during this session. "The first attack on 
the oligarchy was made by ]\Ir. Alex. Stewart, in the shape of 
three resolutions, having for their object the throwing open 
of the doors of the council ; an increase of the number of 
councillors by members chosen from the country (all the mem- 
bers of the council at this time were residents of Halifax), and 
the divesting it of its executive powers. The resolutions led 
to nothing at the time, but the discussion of them drew atten- 
tion to the composition of the council, and prepared the public 
mind for the changes which were to come." 

8. The new governor, Major-General Sir Colin Campbell, 
K.C.B., arrived in Halifax, in July, 1834, and assumed the 
reins of government, relieving Mr. Jetiery, after an adminis- 
tration of eighteen months. "The year 1834 was a dark one 
for Nova Scotia, and especially for Halifax. Two years' suc- 
cessive bad harvests greatly reduced the province, while the 
scarcity of coin, and the Hooding of the country with irredeem- 
able paper money, on which the people had to lose nearly four 
per cent., caused not only heavy loss, but great inconvenience. 
The prices of produce fell very much, fish declined over thirty 
per cent., and many heavy failures took place in Halifax; but 
business trouble was not the only calamity that befell Halitax 
during this luckless summer, for the grim spectre of cholera 
marched through her streets, and laid many of her fairest sons 
and daughters in the cold and silent tomb ; while fear of the 
dread disease drove hundreds from the city and kept the coun- 
try people from entering it, so that on market day the streets 
were almost as deserted as on the Sabbath during church hours. 
The disease made its first appearance on the 14th of August, 
when several cases were reported, and all through that month 
and part of September, the death-rate continued to increase 
until September, when twenty-three deaths Avere reported as 
having taken place, on the previous day, out of one hundred 
and fifty-four cases." Soon after the weather became cooler, 
and the disease gradually disappeared. 

9. The session of Parliament of 1836 was characterized by 
a settlement of the quit-rents question, and the appointment of 
a committee to inquire into the state of education in the prov- 
ince. The report of the committee informs us that an act for 
the establishment of common and grammar schools had been 
passed in 1832, the support depending on the voluntary con- 
tributions of each district. The report shows that, in 1836, 
there were five hundred and thirty schools in the province, at- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



315 




HON. JOSEPH HOME. 



tended by an aggregate of fifteen thousand children, Avhich vras 
a good exhibit. An election was held in 1836, at which Mr. 
Joseph Howe and jNIr. William Annand were elected to repre- 
sent Halifax County. These were two of the ablest reform men 
of that day, and, with their accession to the house, new diffi- 
culties arose between that body 
and the council. Mr. Howe 
introduced twelve resolutions, 
concerning the council, which 
present the state of affairs at that 
time. Therefore , the following 
synopsis is given: — In the 
infancy of the colony its gov- 
ernment was necessarily vested 
in a governor and council, and 
even after a representative 
assembly was granted, the 
practice of choosing members 
of council exclusively from 
the heads of departments, and 
persons resident in the capital, was still pursued, and, with a 
solitary exception, had been continued to the present time. 
The practical effect of this system had been in the highest 
degree injurious to the interests of the country, inasmuch as 
one branch of the Legislature had been generally composed of 
men who, from want of local knoAvledge and experience, were 
not qualified to decide upon the wants of distant portions of the 
province, by which the efforts of the representative branch 
Avere in many instances neutralized. Among the proofs that 
might be adduced of the evils arising from the imperfect struc- 
ture of the council, it was only necessary to refer to the unsuc- 
cessful efforts of the Assembly to extend to the outports the 
advantages of foreign trade ; to the large sum which it was 
compelled, after a long struggle, to resign for the support of 
the customs establishment ; to the difficulties thrown in the way 
of a liberal system of education, and to the recent abortive at- 
tempt to aboHsh the fees taken by the judges of the Supreme 
Court. At the last census of the population, taken in 1827, 
the membership of the Episcopal Church was twenty-eight 
thousand, and that of the dissenters one hundred and fifteen 
thousand ; yet the appointments to the council were mainly 
made from the members of the Episcopal Church, so as to secure 
to that body a decided majority at the board. There were now 



316 HISTORY OF D0:MINI0N of CANADA, 

in the council eight members representing the church, whilst 
the Presbyterians, who were much more numerous, had but 
three representatives, and the lloman Catholics — a large body 
— had but one representative ; the Methodists and Baptists 
being entirely unrepresented. The bishop of the Episcopal 
Church was a member of the council, whilst the Roman Catholic 
bishop and clergymen of all other denominations were exchuled. 
The result of this state of things was a general and injurious 
system of favoritism and monopoly, extending almost through 
every department of the public service over which the local 
government had no control, thereby vesting in the hands of a 
part of the population the resources arising from the industry 
of the whole, and creating invidious distinction and jealous dis- 
content in the minds of a large number of his majesty's subjects. 
Two family connections embraced five members of the council. 
Till very recently five others were copartners in one mercantile 
concern, and to this circumstance might be attributed the failure 
of the efibrts of the Assembly to fix a standard of value, and 
establish a sound currency in the province. The Assembly had 
for years asserted this right to control the casual and territorial 
revenues of the country, Avhether arising from the fees of office, 
the sale of lands, or the royalty paid upon the produce of the 
mines ; but their efforts to obtain justice had been unsuccessful. 
The lands of the province were in effect mortgaged to pay the 
commissioner a salary out of all proportion to the services he 
was called upon to perform, while all the mines and minerals 
of the province had been leased for sixty years to a wealthy 
English company, without the consent of the representatives of 
the people. The presence of the chief-justice at the council 
board was unwise and injurious, having a tendency to lessen 
the respect which the people ought to feel for the courts over 
which he presided. From the warm interest he had always 
felt in public questions, and particularly in some of those in 
which the representative branch and the council had been 
diametrically opposed, and from the influence which his position 
gave him over a numerous bar, he had generally been regarded 
as the head of a political party, and frequently brought into 
violent conflict with a people imbued with the truly British 
idea that judges ought not to mingle in the trials and contentions 
of politics. The evils arising from the structure of the council, 
and the disposition evinced by some of its members to protect 
their own interests and emoluments at the public expense, were 
rendered more injurious by the unconstitutional and insulting 



« 
ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 317 

|jractice, still pertinaciously adliercd to by that body, of shutting 
out the people from their deliberations, — a practice which was 
opposed to that of the House of Lords in England, of the Icijis- 
lative councils of Lower Canada, New Brunswick, Prince 
Edu'ard Island, and Newfoundland, and persevered in notwith- 
standing the murmurs and complaints of the people, and the 
repeated representations and remonstrances of the Assembly. 
In England the people by one vote of their representative 
could change the ministry, and alter any course of policy in- 
jurious to their interests ; but here the ministry and his majesty's 
council, combining legislative, judicial, and executive powers, 
held their seats for life, and treated with contempt or indift'er- 
ence the wishes of the people, and the representatives of Com- 
mons. In England the representative branch could compel a 
redress of grievances by withholding the supplies. Hero they 
had no such remedy, because the salaries of nearly all the public 
officers being provided for by a permanent clause, or paid out 
of the casual or territorial revenues, or from the produce of 
duties collected under the imperial acts, a stoppage of supplies, 
while it inflicted a great injury on the country by leaving the 
roads, bridges, and other essential services unprovided for, 
would not touch the emoluments of the heads of departments 
in the council, or of any but a few of the subordinate officers 
of the government. As a remedy for these grievances it was 
suggested to pray his majesty to take such steps, either l)y 
granting an elective legislative council, or by such other recon- 
struction of the local government as w^ould insure? responsibility 
to the commons, and confer on the people of the province, what 
they valued aljove all other possessions, the blessings of the 
British constitution. The council was embittered with these 
resolutions, and, on the 5th of March, gave the house the alter- 
native of rescinding them or being ignored by the council 
altogether. This created the greatest excitement, and Mr. 
Howe himself moved to rescind the obnoxious resolutions, 
and the motion was adopted, by which the public business was 
resumed. 



318 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



CHAPTER XXVI. 

NOVA SCOTIA FROM 1837 TO 1852, 

THE BATTLE AND VICTORY OF RESPONSIBLE GOVERNMENT — RAILWAYS — 
GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE PROVINCE. 

1. The fishery question, which has ever been one of great 
difficulty in the maritime provinces, is still unsettled. The 
Americans have had the advantage of British American waters 
for many years, and have managed, through diplomacy, to pay 
but little therefor. The war of 1812-15 put a stop to Amer- 
ican fishing for the time being, and Nova Scotia took advantage 
of the temporary suspension to petition the home government 
that the right of the province should thereafter be more defi- 
nitely respected in treaty enactments. By the treaty of Paris, 
1815, the fisheries question was left to a convention, which did 
not settle the terms on Avhich the Americans could fish in Nova 
Scotia and Newfoundland waters until 1818, when an arrange- 
ment was agreed to by which foreigners were excluded from 
fishing within three miles of the headlands, or landing on its 
coasts. These conditions were speedily broken by the Amer- 
ican fishermen, who bought bait from the inhabitants, set nets 
in the harborss, and otherwise violated the treaty. Thus things 
continued, and in 1837 the Assembly voted five hundred pounds 
for arming small vessels for the protection of the coast. 

2. In 1837 an effort w^as made to incorporate the town of 
Halifax, but was unsuccessful, the house refusing to grant the 
petition. The rebellion in Upper and Lower Conada was not 
sympathized in by the reformers of Nova Scotia. At the ses- 
sion of the house in 1838, the address from Sir Colin Camp- 
bell, the governor, informed the Assembly of the suppressing 
of the rebellion in Lower Canada, and thanked the people, 
through their represntatives, foi; the loyal and patriotic manner 
in which they had acted during the troubles in the sister prov- 
inces. Messages were sent down during the session embodying 
despatches from the home government, in which almost all the 
reforms petitioned for at the last session were granted. It was 
ordered that neither the chief-justice nor any of his colleagues 
should sit in the council, so that the administrators of justice 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 319 

may be entirely removed from all participation in political 
affairs ; the right of the representatives of the people to control 
the whole revenue of the province was admitted ; the rents and 
royalties of the mines were placed at the disposal of the house, 
and the change in the constitution of the council demanded by 
the house in its petition granted. By this change two councils 
were created, one purely executive, consisting of nine members, 
and the other legislative, consisting of nineteen members. The 
governor was instructed to send a list of names of the persons 
he would suggest for appointment to the two councils, and pro- 
posed that all the members of the old council should be reap- 
pointed to one of the new councils ; but Lord Glenclg declined 
to accede to this, expressing the desire of her majesty, however, 
that all the present councillors who were not reappointed should 
retain their rank and title on retiring into private life, as there 
was no intention to subject them to reproach or discredit. In 
the formation of the executive council not more than one fourth 
were to be public officers, and the other members were to be 
appointed from different parts of the province and different 
religious denominations, in such manner that it should be made 
evident that no invidious selections were made on religious 
grounds. Sir Colin Campbell, however, entirely ignored the 
latter part of his instructions, and out of nine executive coun- 
cillors seven were members of the Church of England ; and out 
of the nineteen members of the legislative council ten belonged 
to the same communion. This action was highly distasteful to 
the Assembly, and a resolution was adopted that a committee 
be appointed to w^ait on the lieutenant-governor and express 
the dissatisfaction of the house at his not having carried out the 
liberal instructions of the home government. Before anything 
more was done, however, a despatch was received requiring 
the reconstruction of the council, Avhich was accordingly dis- 
solved, and the house prorogued. 

3. The enthusiasm of the Assembly on the receipt of infor- 
mation that American troops had occupied part of New Bruns- 
wick, on account of difficulties growing out of the frontier 
question, characterized the session of 1839. The house at once 
put eight thousand men at the disposal of the governor and voted 
one hundred thousand pounds to defray expenses. Fortunately 
war was avoided, as will be seen in our history of New Bruns- 
wick. During this session Messrs. Herbert Huntington and 
William Young were appointed by the Assembly to proceed to 
EngUmd and urge on the government the justice of granting 



320 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

responsible goveriimeiit ; while the legislative council appointed 
Hon. Alex. Stewart and Hon. Louis M. Wilkins to oppose any 
change in the existing style of government. The delegates of 
the Assembly had several interviews with Lord Normandy, and 
gained certain concessions. Cumberland, Pansboro', Windsor, 
Shelburne, and Lunenburg were made free ports of entry; the 
customs and excise departments were combined, thus saving 
about one thousand five hundred pounds a year to the province, 
and some reforms were eflected in the management of the postal 
department. A bill was also sanctioned by government allow- 
ing actual settlers to acquire land as low as one shilling an acre. 
The publication of the Earl of Durham's report on the British 
American colonies, in which he urged a union of all the prov- 
inces, caused much excitement in Nova Scotia, and popular 
feeling was altogether opposed to the projected union. The 
Assembly passed a series of resolutions against the project, the 
stronsrest of which was as follows : " That a federal union of the 
British American colonies would prove an extremely difficult if 
not an impracticable measure ; that the experiment, if j^rac- 
ticable, would be eminently dangerous to the interests of the 
mother country as well as those of the colonies ; that its ten- 
dency w^ould be to separate the colonies from the parent State, 
by imbuing the rising generation Avitli a fondness of elective 
institutions to an extent inconsistent with the British constitu- 
tion ; that it would involve the lower colonies, which are now 
contented and peaceable, in the political discussions of Lower 
Canada, and add greatly to their local and general expenditures, 
without producing any adequate benefit to them, to the Canadas, 
or to the empire at large." 

4. But there are some other things aside from politics, 
events of which mention should be made. The province was 
steadily growing, emigrants flowed in, trade and commerce 
flourished, and the necessity for the greater use of that great 
civilizer of the nineteenth century — steam — was l)eginning to 
be felt. As early as 1838 efforts were made l)y Judge Hali- 
burton and others to establish steam communication between 
Halifax and Liverpool, and in the spring of that year he had 
an interview with Captain Claxton, secretary of the Bristol 
Steam Packet Company, on the subject, and afterwards at- 
tended a meeting of the owners of the "Great Western," who 
expressed their willingness to put vessels on the line, provided 
the government would grant a subsidy for carrying the mails. 
Application was also made in the summer of lb38 to Lord 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 321 

Clenelg, by Mr. Howe and Mr. Wm. Crane, of New Bruns- 
wick, and his lordship promised to give the matter his atten- 
tion. During the following year the matter was put into 
detinite shape by the government entering into a contract with 
Mr. Samuel Cunard (afterwards knighted) , a native of Halifax, 
for the carrying of a weekly mail between Liverpool and Hali- 
fax and Boston, the annual subsidy being fifty-live thousand 
pounds. This project was successfully carried out, and the line 
thus established now ranks among the largest steamship com- 
panies in the world, numbering over fifty vessels. The year 
previous the first railway in Nova Scotia was opened, running 
between Albion coal mines and New Glasgow. The event was 
celebrated by a grand banquet, at which over two thousand 
persons sat down to an abundance. But, while these internal 
improvements were going on, the fight for responsible govern- 
ment waged with greater intensity. Mr. Howe led the reform- 
ers, and they pushed the cause with great enthusiasm. Sir 
Colin Campbell was a stanch old tory, and, although the 
home government had instructed him to administer the affairs 
of the province in accordance with the wishes of the people, 
he was not to ])e persuaded. He had resolutely set his face 
against responsible government, and he fought it as coura- 
geously and as persistently as he, fourteen years afterwards, 
fought the Russian army at Balaklava with his "noble six 
hundred." He replied to the house, that to comply with its 
request would be to introduce a change in the fundamental law 
of the province, and he could not interpret the secretary's 
letter as bearing so liberal a construction as that ; he therefore 
declined to make any changes in the executive council. The 
house and the governor were now at direct variance ; and the 
only course left for the former to resort to was to petition the 
home government to remove Sir Colin, which was done in a 
ver}^ moderate-toned address, calmly but forcibly setting forth 
the reasons for the desired change, and couched in such respect- 
ful but irresistible language that the home government could 
not fail to see, that, if the governor Avould not exercise the 
power placed in his hands, some one must succeed him, who 
would. The concluding paragraph states the case very clearly : 
" That your majesty will join with this house in obviating the 
necessity for such appeals " (referring to appeals to the pu1)lic 
opinion of the other colonies, and not to arms, as may be in- 
ferred) ; " that you will repress these absurd attempts to 
govern provinces by the aid, and for the exclusive benefit, of 



322 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

minorities, this Assembly confidently believe ; and, in asking 
your majesty to remove Sir Colin Campbell, and send to Nova 
Scotia a governor who will not only represent the crown, but 
carry out its policy with tirmness and good faith, the repre- 
sentatives of Nova Scotia perform a painful duty to their 
sovereign, and to their constituents, but recommend the only 
remedy which they fear can now bo applied to establish 
harmony between the executive and the legislature of this 
province." 

5. The fight for responsible government Avas now fairly 
inaugurated, and Joseph Howe was its champion and leader. 
On the 301h of March, 1840, a public meeting was held in Ma- 
sonic Ilall, Halifax, at which the action of the Assembly in re- 
questing the recall of Sir Colin Campbell was freely discussed by 
both the I'riends and opponents of the Assembly ; but, after a 
debate of about seven hours, it In-oke up in some confusion, 
and both parties claimed to have had the support of a majority 
of those present. All doubt, however, as to the intention of 
the colonial secretary was soon after set at rest by the arrival 
of the report of a speech made by him in the Imperial Parlia- 
ment on presenting some Canadian correspondence, on the 23d 
of March (a week before the Halifax meeting was held). He 
said, " The practice had unfortunately prevailed that there had 
been one set of men enjoying the confidence of the governor, 
forming very often a small party in the colony, distributing the 
revenues of the country according to their own notions ; and, 
on the other hand, there had been men, ambitious perhaps, 
stirring perhaps, but at the same time of great public 
talents, and that these should be excluded from their share in 
the administration seemed an unfortunate and vicious system ; 
and they thought that, by the rule of the administration, a better 
practice ought to bo introduced. In conformity with this 
opinion his predecessor in ofhce, the Marquis of Normandy, 
informed the governor of Nova Scotia that, whenever a va- 
cancy occurred in the council, he was to fill it up by those per- 
sons selected from the majority of the Assembly whom he thought 
most qualified for such a trust. The occasion of making appoint- 
ments arose soon after he had succeeded his noble friend, and 
the Governor of Nova Scotia requested to know whether he was 
to act on the directions which he had received from his prede- 
cessor. Ho told him he was ; and he knew no better way of 
giving confidence to the provinces, and at the same time 
making the leaders of the Assembly practised men of business, 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 323 

than by appointing them to situations of official trust and 
responsibility. He could by no means lay down an inliexible 
rule on the subject, but lie maintained a general style should 
be adopted l)y which the leaders among the majority of the 
Assembly should be included in the executive government." 

G. The marriage of Queen Victoria, in 1840, was the cause 
of great rejoicings in Nova Scotia ; also, the arrival of the 
pioneer Cunard steamer "Britannia," on the 17th July, after a 
very successful passage of twelve days and a half, — a happy 
omen of the good fortune which has attended that lucky line to 
the present day. Her arrival was made quite an event in both 
Halifax and Boston, especially at the latter place, where she 
was most enthusiastically received, and Mr. Cunard was pre- 
sented by the citizens with a service of plate in acknowledg- 
ment of his services. During the summer Halifax was visited 
by Mr. C. Poulet Thompson, Governor-General of the British 
Provinces in North America, who carefully consulted with the 
leaders of both parties on the subject of the proposed reforms 
in the constitution of the province. In particular he had a 
long interview with INIr. Howe, who read and explained to him 
his (Mr. Howe's) pamphlet on responsible government, in 
which he argued that it could be just as safely and profitably 
applied to Nova Scotia as to England. The governor asked 
many questions and explanations, and when he left the prov- 
ince the reformers felt perfectly assured that his report would 
be in favor of granting their reasonable demands. It was now 
generally known that Sir Colin Campbell was to be recalled 
and Viscount Falkland was to succeed him. His lordship ar- 
rived at Halifax in September, 1840, and Sir Colin Campbell 
retired with the respect of nearly all classes, notwithstanding: 
his bitter opposition to the advocates of responsible govern- 
ment. 

7. Lord Falkland was no sooner installed in the sfovern- 
ment than he caused the retirement of several of the executive 
council, and summoned Messrs. Howe and M'Xab to that body. 
This was the l)eginning of responsible government. The house 
was dissolved in 1840, and a new election ordered, which, 
however, did not materiall}'' change the complexion of that 
body, as the reformers were still in a respectable majority. 
On the meeting of the new house, in 1841, Joseph Howe was 
elected speaker. The principal acts of the session were those 
granting aid to general educational purposes, and incorporating 
the town of Halifax. In 1843 the Assembly became entangled 



324 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

over the question of denominational colleges, and the governor 
dissolv^cd the house, and at the next election the reformers were 
beaten by a light majority. The act of dissolution created a 
wider breach between the governor and the reform party. 
Messrs. HoAve and Annand were the leaders of the latter, and 
Mr. Johnson was the champion of the Tories. The difficulty 
between the two parties was increased when Mr. M. B. Alison, 
a gentleman who was a relative of JNIr. Johnson's, but had not 
a seat in either branch of the Legislature, was called to the 
executive council by Lord Falkland, who maintained that the 
right of appointing to office rested entirely in his owni hands. 
On the appointment Ijcing made known, Messrs. Howe, Uni- 
ache, and iV^'Nab, tendered the resignation of their seats in 
the executive council. 

8. The governor, in his speech from the throne, in 1844, 
laid down as his policy, that he did not think that the executive 
council should be composed entirely of one partyj and that it 
w^ould be most conducive to the interests of the province to 
have all parties represented ; and that wdiile he would use the 
royal prerogative mildly and justly, for the benefit of all classes 
of her majesty's sul)jects, he would strongly oppose any attempt 
to infringe on it. The debate on the address lasted two weeks, 
and was finally carried by a narrow majority of two, the vote be- 
ing twenty-six to twenty-four. Towards the end of the session 
Mr. Howe moved a vote of w^ant of confidence in the executive 
council, but was defeated by three votes. Overtures were 
made to Messrs. Howe, Uniache, and M'Nab to resume their 
seats in the council, but they declined, and soon afterwards 
Mr. Howe resumed his connection with the "Nova Scotian " 
and "Morning Chronicle," and began a fierce newspaper war 
on the governoi-, who was constantly lampooned in the columns 
of those journals. The governor still continued his effi3rts to 
get some of the reform party into the council, and tendered 
seats to five gentlemen, two of whom were Catholics, but ex- 
cluded Mr. Howe, for the reason — as stated in a despatch to 
Lord Stanley, colonial secretary — that the main fact of his 
being reinstated in the council, after the bitter attacks made by 
him through his newspaper on the representative of her majesty, 
would l)e a degradation of his (the governor's ) position, and 
make Mr. Howe de facto governor of Nova Scotia. The colo- 
nial secretary entirely approved of Lord Falkland's conduct in 
asserting his right to call whom he pleased to assist him in his 
deliberations with regard to the government of the province. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 325 

9. The session of the Assembly in 1845 was a stormy one, 
but the government had a majority strong enough to facilitate 
the business, and the reformers could do nothing but continue 
their scurrilous aliuse of the governor in the columns of" the 
" Chronicle " and " Nova Scotian," — a class of journalism at which 
Mr. Howe was an expert. One doggerel composition in par- 
ticular, entitled " The Lord of the Bedchamber," caused much 
indignation, and was made the subject of discussion in the 
house. During the summer Lord Falkland made a journey 
through the province, but was coldly received in several places, 
and in some almost openly insulted. During the yeav 1845 
the question of a railway from Halifax to Quebec was very 
freely discussed in the press, and a provincial committee was 
appointed, who collected a deal of valuable information as to 
the route, etc., and strongly urged the great advantage such a 
line would be to the province in developing its resources, and 
increasing its trade and commerce. During this year the ad- 
visability of a railway between Halifax and Windsor was also 
discussed at a public meeting in Halifax, and resolutions 
adopted in favor of its construction. The ill-feeling between 
the governor and the reform party still continued, and INIr. 
Howe kept up his newspaper attacks ; in 1846 he published a 
long and bitter article against the governor, because some of his 
friends had called Mr. Howe a mendicant, on account of his 
having accepted a sum of money from his admirers to compen- 
sate him for the loss he sustained in resigning his office under the 
government. It having become manifest that Lord Falkland's 
influence for good was gone, he was recalled in August, 1846, 
and Sir John Harvey, who had been governor of Prince Ed- 
ward Island, New Brunswick, and Newfoundland, was appointed 
to succeed him. 

10. Sir John Harvey undertook to smooth over party 
differences, but he found the reformers more inclined to trust the 
polls at the coming election than to listen to any compromises he 
had to offer. They were not disappointed; for, in 1847, the 
reformers again came into power, and voted no confidence in 
the council, which caused the resignation of the members of that 
body, when a new council or cabinet was formed from the 
leading reformers in the house, by which the much-coveted 
responsible government was fully inaugurated. The great 
political tide now began to ebb, and the government and people 
turned their attention to the development of the resources 
of the country. The coal mines were opened, telegraph lines 



326 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

were completed, mail routes established, education supported, 
and the population increased and improved. In 1850 the laws 
were consolidated. The report of the committee having the 
work in charge thus concluded : " in the executioii of the im- 
portant and onerous trust committed to our charge, though Ave 
have been compelled to bestow^ an amount of labor and a degree 
of attention which none of us in the first instance anticipated, 
there may be some imperfections or defects to be hereafter 
remedied. The main advantage to be derived from the work 
will be that the laws Avliich regulate social life, protect and 
transmit properfy, determine political rights, and define the 
punishment of offences, have been reduced to system, and 
clothed in simple and perspicuous language, so as to be in- 
telligible to all who may have occasion to consult them. And 
as the present is the first attempt of the hind in a British colony, 
we must bespeak the indulgence of your excellency, and of the 
public, for the imperfections it may contain, and Avhich are 
perhaps inseparable from so extensive an undertaking." 

11. The subject of railways came up for attention under 
Lord Falkland, in 1850, and was ably discussed, and we n*iay as 
w^ell briefly sketch what had been proposed in Nova Scotia in 
the way of railway communication with Canada and the United 
States. "Lord Durham, in his excellent report, strongly ad- 
vocated railways as the most cfiectual means of binding the 
provinces together, and the subject was several times agitated ; 
but no one province was able to undertake the scheme, and 
the province of Canada was too busy trying to build the Grand 
Trunk, to connect the upper and lower parts of the province, to 
enter very warmly into the scheme for connecting the maritime 
provinces with Canada. After the settlement of the boundary 
question, in 1842 (to which we shall more fully refer in our 
history of New Brunswick), the imperial government contem- 
plated making a great military macadmized road through New 
Brunswick, from the bend of the Peticodiac to Quebec. A 
London company offered to substitute a railway, on condition 
that part of the money necessary to make the road should be 
granted to it. This scheme excited attention in Nova Scotia 
and New Brunswick, but awakened very little interest in the 
Canadas. Nova Scotia gave an impetus to the project. The 
government.of Lord Falkland considered it idle and visionary 
to expect that a vast undertaking, which held out no inducement 
of immediate profit, could l)e carried through by a company. 
It could only be constructed by the imperial government, with 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 327 

combined and spirited cooperation of the three provinces. 
The lower provinces undertook to bear the expenses of an ex- 
ploratory survey of the country through which the railway must 
pass. Canada, for the sake of the great national party, agreed to 
join with them. The British government, in response to their 
miited request, sent out Major William Eobinson and Capt. 
Henderson, of the ro3'al engineers, with a staff, to undertake 
the work. The report of Major Robinson was submitted to the 
Legislatures of the three provinces in 1849. It gave an enthu- 
siastic estimate of the resources of the country, and of the im- 
portance of the railway for their development. Out of the 
several routes explored the preference was given to that by the 
coast of the gulf, — the north shore, — as the best for purposes 
of military defence. The cost was calculated at live million 
pounds sterling. In anticipation of the immediate action of 
the imperial government, Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Bruns- 
wick voted aid to the extent of six thousand pounds a year, 
and ten miles of ungranted lands on each side of the railway." 

12. But, to continue the sul)ject of railways, Ave lind that a 
new impetus was given to railway enterprises by a convention 
held at Portland, Me., on July 31, 1850, where delegates 
from Nova Scotia and New Brunswick met delegates from the 
New England States to consider the means of connecting TIalifiix 
with Bangor, Portland, and the United States railways by a line 
passing through St. John, N.B., the railway to be known as the 
European and North American Kailway, and a great deal of 
enthusiasm was shown at the meeting, which was held in a 
hall profusely decorated with English and American flags, the 
" Union Jack " and the " Stars and Stripes " being closely inter- 
woven in token of amity. Towards the close of the year Mr. 
Joseph Howe entered the railway field. He was opposed to hav- 
ing a railway running through British territory controlled by an 
American company, and proposed building the road on provincial 
credit, under imperial guaranty. For this purpose he went to 
England, armed with a letter of introduction from Sir John 
Plarvey to Earl Grey, to endeavor to induce the British gov- 
ernment to guarantee a loan of eight hundred thousand pounds 
to ])uild a road from Halifax to Windsor. Mr. Howe set himself 
rigorously to work at his task, and by his letter to Earl Grey, 
and his speeches in England, created so favorable an impression 
of the resources of Nova Scotia, that INIr. Hawes, under-sec- 
retary of state, wrote him, under date 10th March, 1851, that 
the imperial government would guarantee the road, provided 



328 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

the three provinces could agree among themselves on a road to 
extend from Halifax to Quebec or Montreal, and no o])jcction 
would he made to this road connecting with the European and 
North American so as to give access to the American railway 
system. A meeting of delegates from the three provinces was 
proposed by Earl Grey, and took place at Toronto, in June, 
1851. An agreement was arrived at, and for a while it looked 
as if the Intercolonial and the North American railways would 
be commenced at once ; but misunderstandings followed, Avhich 
delayed the work, which, however, was finally accomplished, 
but not until, in the case of the Intercolonial, confederation 
secured its completion. 

13. Sir John Harvey died at the government house, at 
Halifax. He had administered the affairs of the province for 
six years, with great fidelity. He was succeeded by Sir John 
Gaspard Les Merchant ; the affairs of the province during the 
short interval that occurred being administered by Col. Bazal- 
gette. 



CHAPTEE XXVII. 

NOVA SCOTIA FROM 1852 TO 18G7. 

CONFEDERATION ACCOlirLISHED HOWE AND TUPPER. 

1. The administration of Sir John G. Les Marchant was one 
under which the province continued its march of prosperity. 
Mr. Howe having resigned his position as provincial secretary, 
in order to accept the chairmanship of the railway road, a re- 
construction of the cabinet took place, Mr. William Young being 
charged with the task. Mr. Young, in a letter to his constit- 
uents of Inverness, laid down the railway policy of the new 
government to l)e, a trunk line from Halifax to Pictou, one 
westward to Windsor, and through the eastern counties to 
Digl)y, connecting Halifax with the basin of Minas, and a line 
from Truro to the New Brunswick frontier, to connect Avith any 
intercolonial line which might afterwards l)e built. The money 
for the construction of these roads was to be raised on provincial 
debentures, the whole revenues of the province being pledged 
for payment of principal and interest. For some time past the 
government of Canada had been endeavoring to effect a reel- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



529 



i:)rocity treaty Avitli the United States, and the effort was suc- 
cessful on the 5tli June, 1854, when such a treaty was signed, 
at Washington, b}' Lord Elgin, Governor-General of Canada, on 
the one part, and lion. AV. L. JNIarcy, American Secretary of 
State on the other. This treaty was to continue in force ten 
years, after which it could be terminated by either party on 
giving one year's notice. Under its provisions the produce of 
the sea, the soil, and the forest could bo exchanged between the 
United States and the British possessions duty free ; the Amer- 
icans were allowed to fish in the waters of Nova Scotia and 
New Brunswick, and to use the Canadian canals, on the same 
terms as Canadian vessels. The treaty was very acceptable to 
Upper Canada, but caused considerable excitement in Nova 
Scotia, where it was denounced as unjust to that province, 
the Ini[)erial Parliament having given away her right in 
the fisheries without either consulting the wishes of the people 
or securing them any adequate equivalent. The excitement 
was, however, of but momentary duration, the attention of 
the people being shortly dfterwtirds occupied by the Crimean 
war. 

2. In 1854 a grand industrial exhibition was opened in 
Halifax. Mr. J. W. Johnson 
introduced a prohibitory liquor 
law in 1855. The bill was, 
however, not only opposed, but 
ridiculed, by Mr. Howe, and 
was defeated. A general elec- 
tion took place in 1855, and the 
strength of the reform Jiarty 
was greatly shaken ])y the de- 
feat, in (,"uml)erland, of Messrs. 
Joseph Howe and Stephen Ful- 
ton, by the conservative candi- 
dates. Dr. Tupper and ]\Ir. A. 
McFarlane. Nothing more of 
apolitical nature occurred din- 
ing the year, or until the 27th 
December, when a very intem- 
perate letter from Mr. Ilowe, 
entitled " Railway Riots and 

Catholic Commentators," appeared in the " Chronicle," and 
proved the death-knell of the reform administration. A riot had 
occurred between some Catholic and Protestant workmen, on ac- 




330 



HISTORY OF DOMIXIOX OF CANADA, 



count of the latter interfering "with the former vrhile cele- 
brating the feast of Corpus Christi. The Halifax " Catho- 
lic" i)ul>lishe(l a very mild article on the sul)ject, not 
defending the Catholics, who were tlie aggressors, bat depre- 
cating the provocation which caused them to commit a l>reacli 
of the peace ; the editor only said, "that, knoAving how sensi- 
tive the Irish people are to everything which affects their 
religion or the character of their clergy, Protestants cf any 
nation, who are brought into contact with them, would show 
better their respect for the precepts of the Bible if they abstained 
from those taunts and provocations, and from actions in which 
they were too prone to indulge." Mr. Howe, on the other hand, 
was very violent and ungracious in his attack, saying, coarsely, 
that " every Protestant in every free country had a right to 
laugh at the Ileal Presence, as every Catholic had to ridicule 
that in which he disbelieved, or to laugh at the simple ceremo- 
nies which the Protestants deemed sufficient." This letter raised 
a great deal of ill-feeling — not amongst Catholics alone, but 
amongst Protestants, who believed in the right of every one to 

the full exercise of his relig- 
ious faith Avithout interference 
by word or deed — against Mr. 
Howe ; and it reacted so much 
on the party he represented, 
that when Parliament met, in 
1857, the conservatives were 
able to carry a vote of want 
of confidence by a majority of 
seven, and Mr. J. W. Johnson 
Avas called upon, to form a 
ministry, AA'hich was gazetted 
on the 24th February, 1856, the 
meml)ers being, J. W. Johnson, 
attorney -general ; Dr. Charles 
Tupper, provincial secretary ; 
John J. Marshall, financial 
secretary; Staley BroAA^i, receiA^er-general ; Martin I. Wilkins, 
solicitor-general . 

3. The .ncAv goA'crnment first engaged its attention in the 
settlement of the mining difficult}', Avliich it Avisely accom- 
plished. In 1858 Sir Les Merchant retired from the govern- 
ment, and Avas succeeded by the Earl of INIulgrave. A new 
election, in 1859, resulted in giA'ing the reformers a majority 




HON. DR. CHAS. TUPPER. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



m 



of two, and although it vras jH-ctt}' g:cnerany believed that at 
least that number of reformers held their seats illegall}^, the 
majority protected its own honor, possibly at the expense of 
the honor of the house, and succeeded in voting a want of confi- 
dence in the minority, "svliich resigned. Mr. Young, a popular 
leader, Avas called on to form a ministry. The visit of His 
Eoyal Highness the Prince of Wales, to Halifax, in 1860, was 
an event that will never be erased from fiistory. He was 
received with all the enthusiasm of true, loyal hearts, and for 
some time the capital put on her best appearance. In 1SG3 
the liberals or reformers were again defeated, and were 
compelled to resign. Mr. Johnson was again called upon to 
form a ministry. 

4. The new house met hi February, 1SG4, and was opened 
by Sir Hastings Doyle, the acting administrator, the Earl of 
Mulgrave having retired, and his successor, Sir liichard Graves 
MacDonncll, not having arrived. The speech from tlie throne 
referred to the then proposed federal union of the maritime 
jDrovinces, and the subject of education. Improvement in 
educational matters was needed. In 18()1, out of eighty-three 
thousand children in the province, between the ages of five and 
fifteen, only thirty-one thousand attended school, and oue- 
quai-ter of the whole population 
could neither read nor write. 
The provisions of the bill pro- 
posed were ample, and were 
thus stated by Dr. Tupper in 
his speech introducing it : " The 
first thing proposed in the bill 
which he now sul)mitted was the 
estabUshmcnt of a council of 
public instruction. Difficulty 
was experienced in determining 
who should be the council, but, 
after anxious deliberation, it was 
thought that the executive coun- 
cil, at all times responsible to the 
people, could perform the important functions of the position 
more efficiently than any other body that could- be selected. 
It would be acknowledged that, in order to secure eiiiciency in 
the department of public instruction, the services of a cjuali- 
fied superintendent, who should discharge the important duties 
of examining and reporting on the educational state of every 




sin RICHARD G. MACDONNELL. 



332 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

locality in the province, were indispensable. It was therefore 
proposed to appoint such an officer, under whose direction 
there would be a staff of paid inspectors, whose duty would 
consist in periodically inspecting all the schools within their 
respective districts. It was also proposed to appoint a board, 
Avitli the view of surveying and arranging all the school dis- 
tricts, adapting the subdivision of them to the present condi- 
tion of the country. Examiners were also to be provided for 
each district, one of whom should be the inspector ; their duty 
being to ascertain the qualifications of applicants for license to 
teach. By this means it was hoped the status of the teachers 
would be materially raised. It was also intended that one of 
the trustees, who should be charged with the special business 
of management, should receive, as remuneration for his ser- 
vices, a moderate commission on the money collected. The 
bill also provided greater facilities for the carrying out of the 
principle of assessment, and a premium of twentj^-five per 
cent, was to be offered to every school founded on the assess- 
ment principle and declared free. In order to meet the neces- 
sities of the poorer districts the bill provided that one-fifth of 
the entire amount placed at the disposal of each Board of Com- 
missioners should be set apart for the purpose of supporting 
schools in the sparsely settled districts, in addition to the 
amount to w^hich they were entitled under the law. It was 
proposed to classify the teachers, according to their proficiency, 
and to pay them without reference to the wealth and population 
of the district in which they might be located." The elevation 
of the Hon. Attorney-General Johnson to the judgeship of the 
Supreme Court caused a vacancy in the ministry, which was 
filled by Mr. llitchie, who was appointed solicitor-general, and 
called to a seat at the council board. 

5. During the session of 186-i Hon. Dr. Tupper introduced 
a series of resolutions with a view to the union of the maritime 
provinces, and this led, not to a union oj:' those provinces alone, 
^but the federation of all the provinces, and the formation of 
the present Dominion. As early as 1808 Mr. E,. J. Uniacke 
introduced the suljject of a confederation of the British prov- 
inces into the Assembly of Nova Scotia, Ijut the matter was not 
acted on. During the attempts to impeach Judge Sewell, of 
Quebec, that gentleman urged on Lord Bathurst a union of all 
the provinces as the best cure for the troubles then openly ex- 
isting in Quebec, and threatened in the other provinces. When 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



333 




SIR JOHN BEVEKLEY ROBINSON. 



the question of a reunion of the provinces of Upper and Lower 
Canada was proposed in 1822, Sir John Beverley Robinson, at 
the request of the colonial secretary, drew up a report on the 
feasibility of a confederation of 
all the provinces, and proposed 
what he would consider an equi- 
table basis for such an union. 
Again, in 1839, Lord Durham, 
in his report on the condition of 
the difierent provinces, strongly 
urged confederation as the best 
remedy to be applied to the 
troubles affecting all of them, 
and, in fact, at every period when 
one or more of the provinces 
was suffering from internal com- 
motion, confederation was rec- 
ommended as a sort of univer- 
sal panacea, warranted to cure every kno^m or unknown ill. 
The next positive effort in favor of confederation was made in 
the Nova Scotia Legislature by Mr. Johnson, in 1854, when 
the subject was introduced and discussed, Mr. Johnson warmly 
advocating it, but INlr. Howe opposing it and favoring colonial 
representation in the Imperial Parliament. In 1857 the mat- 
ter was put into more tangible form by the Nova Scotia Legis- 
lature appointing a committee to proceed to England and 
confer with the colonial secretary on the subject. The Cana- 
dian government now took up the matter, and, as we have seen, 
by the joint efforts of the leading statesmen in each of the 
provinces the grand scheme of confederation was consum- 
mated. Hon. Dr. Tupper must be written in history as the 
champion of confederation in Nova Scotia. The scheme T^ms 
bitterly opposed by Mr. Howe, and most of the leading re- 
formers, and was finally carried in the face of a deadly opposi- 
tion, to which we shall have occasion to refer hereafter. Nova 
Scotia, in 1867, became a member of the Dominion of Canada. 
The following is a list of the governors of Nova Scotia, from 
1749 to the confederation of 18G7 : — 



Hon. Edward Cornwallis . 1749 

Peregrine T. Hobson, Esq. . 1752 

Charles Lawi-ence, Esq. . . 1754 

Hon. Robert Monckton . . 1756 

Jonathan Belcher, Esq. . . 1700 



INIontague Wilmot, Esq. . . 1763 
Michael Francklin, Esq., 1722 

and ..... 1766 
Lord William Campbell, 1766 

and 1772 



334 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



Francis Lego^e, Esq. 
Mariot Arbiithnot, Esq. . 
Richard Hughes, Esq. . 
Sir Andrew S. Hammond 
John Parr, Esq. 
Edward Fanning, Esq. . 
R. Bulkley, Esq. . 
John Wentworth, Esq. . 
Sir George Frevost 
Sir John Coape Sherbrooke 
Gen. Darroch . 



. 1773 


Gen. Smyth . 


. 1816 


. 177G 


Earl of Dalhoiisie . 


. 1819 


. 1778 


Sir John Kempt 


. 1820 


. 1781 


M.Wallace, Esq. . 


. 182G 


. 1782 


Sir Peregrine Maitland 


. 1828 


. 1783 


Sir Colin Campbell 


. 1834 


. 1791 


Eord Falkland 


. 1840 


. 1792 


Sir John Harvey 


. 1846 


. 1808 


Sir J. G. LeMarcliant 


. 1852 


. 1811 


The Earl of Mul grave 


. 1858 


. 1811 


Sir Richard Graves Macdonell 18G4 



CHAPTER XXVni. 

NEW BRUNSWICK FROM 1734 TO 1832, 



PROGKESS OF THE PROVINCE • 



-THE LUJIBEU TKADE SniP-BUILDING 

MIEAMACIII. 



1. This history of New Brunswick dates from its erection 
into a separate province, in 1784, previous to which it formed 
a part of Nova Scotia. The first governor of the new province 
was Colonel Thomas Carleton, a brother of Lord Dorchester. 
He arrived at St. John in November, 1784, and on the fol- 
lowing day he issued a proclamation declaring the existence of 
the new province which he had cqme to govern. The govern- 
ment consisted of a Council, which was both executive and legis- 
lative, of twelve members, and a House of Assembly, of twenty- 
six members. This first council was composed almost entirely 
of united empire loj'alists, who had occupied prominent posi- 
tions in their native States, and who had lost their fortunes by 
thojr loyalty to the British cause during the Revolution. The 
following short sketches, taken from Archer's "History of 
Canada," will prove interesting, as relating to the twelve most 
remarkaljle men in the early history of the province : " Chief- 
Justice Ludlow had been a judge in the Supreme Court of New 
York ; James Putnam was considered one of the ablest lawyers 
in all America ; the Reverend and Honorable Jonathan Odell, 
first provincial secretary, had acted as chaplain in the rojal 
army, practised physic, and written political poetry : Judge 
Joshua Upham, a graduate of Harvard, abandoned the bar 
durinjr the war and l^ecame a colonel of dragoons ; Judge Isaac 
Allen had been colonel of the second battalion of New Jersey 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. ' 335 

volunteers, and lost an estate in Pennsylvania through his devo- 
tion to the loyalist cause ; Judge Edward Winslow, nephew 
of Colonel John Winslow, who executed the decree that ex- 
pelled the Acadians from Nova Scotia, had attained the rank of 
colonel in the royal army ; Beverley Robinson had raised and 
conmianded the Loj-al Americiin Regiment, and had lost great 
estates' on the Hudson river ; Gabriel G. Ludlow had commanded 
a battalion of Maryland volunteers ; Daniel Bliss had been a com- 
missary in the royal army ; Abijah Willard had taken no active 
part in the war. He was one of fifty-tive gentlemen who 
petitioned Sir Guy Carleton to grant them each a field-marshal's 
allowance of land (five thousand acres), on account of the great 
respectability of the position that thgy had held. AVilliam 
Hazen and Gilfred Studhomc were settled in the province 
before the landing of the loyalists." This council conducted 
the affairs of the young province for many years Mith only one 
change, the vacancy caused by the death of Judge Putnam 
being filled by Judge John Saunders, who was descended from 
an old cavalier family that settled in Virginia at the time of the 
Commonwealth. He served with distinction durimTf the Revolu- 
tionary War. 

2. Governor Carleton, in opening the first Assembly, spoke 
of the prosperity of the young province, and thanked the 
•people for their loyalty. The capital was removed from St. 
John to St. Anne's Point, in 1788. The place was named 
Fredericton, and has remained the capital of the province ever 
since. The removal of the capital to Fredericton Avas an im- 
provement in point of location in a geographical point, but, of 
course, had no particular eficct over the politics of that day ; for 
the government had scarcely been settled in the new quarters 
when disputes grew up between the Council and the Assembly 
conccrriing the control of the revenues of the province. Fol- 
lowing this came the struggle for responsible government, sim- 
ilar to that in Nova Scotia, which we have already noticed. 
The first general dead-lock between the two branches of the 
government came np on a question of the pay of the members 
of the house. They voted themselves a dollar and a half a day, 
and the council threw out the bill. The house then referred 
the matter to the colonial secretary in London, the Duke of 
Portland, who remonstrated with the assemblymen. Before 
this, however, the house had shown its knowledge of parlia- 
mentary intrigue, by refusing to pass any of the appropriations, 
except with the passage of the appropriation for their own pay. 



336 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

The contest was continued three years, when the Assembly 
finally won the battle, and harmony was restored. 

3. As early as 1788 an eftbrt was put forth by William 
Davidson to settle on the Miramichi, to utilize the luxuriant 
growth of timber in that section. This gentleman brought out 
quite a number of settlers fronl the mother country, amongst 
whom were some ship-carpenters : and, three years after, Jona- 
than Leavitt launched at St. John the first vessel in New 
Brunswick. Davidson launched soon after the first one on the 
Miramichi. This was the beginning, and the lumber trade 
sjDrang into great importance at once. The British navy was 
now sweeping the seas, at the expense of hundreds of masts, 
and New Brunswick forests afforded a most satisfactory supply. 
The vessels carried over spars, and brought back immigrants, 
and thus population and prosperity increased hand in hand. 
The administration of Governor Carleton continued for twenty 
years, and was an able and prosperous term. He saw the 
province reclaimed from a state of nature, and rendered fruitful 
and productive, while the people enjoyed the l)lessings of peace, 
which at the same period were denied the mother country. 
Governor Carleton returned to England in 1803, with the 
respect of all whom he had so wisely governed. 

*4. For some time no successor was appointed, and the 
affairs of the province Avere administered by presidents. In 
1809, when it became evident that there would be a war with 
the United States, military men were appointed to the govern- 
ment of all the provinces, and Major-General Hunter was sent 
to New Brunswick. He only remained a short time, however, 
and was followed by six other military presidents, very much 
to the dissatisfaction of the people. In 1809 a heavy duty was 
imposed on timber coming from the Baltic, while timber from 
the colonies was admitted free. This gave a great impetus to 
trade with Ncav Brunswick, and was of material advantage to 
the province. The declaration of war by the United States 
called forth the loyal sentiment of the New Brimswickers, and 
this was shown in a practical way by the " King's Regiment of 
New Brunswick," Avhich had been first formed out of the united 
empire loyalists of 1784 enlisting in the regular army for ser- 
vice in the upper provinces. It was mustered in as the 104th, 
and served Avith great gallantry during the war. The local 
Legislature passed very complimentary resolutions at the time 
of the muster-in, and presented the regiment Avitli a handsome 
silver trumpet. As the Avinter was closing in, only a part of 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 337 

the men could be conveyed from St. John to Quebec by boat, 
and the remainder made a long aud toilsome march over land 
on snow-shoes. Although the province was greatly excited 
over the Avar, and the merchants were kept in constant fear for 
their vessels by the privateers hovering about the coast, yet the 
people suffered none of its actual horrors, and were rather 
benefited than otherwise by the great demand caused for 
timber for building and repairing the large number of new 
vessels needed on the ocean and on the lakes. 

5. The Assembly had long since become heartily sick of the 
practice of appointing military presidents, who had no interest 
in the province, and petitioned the home government to ap- 
point a regular lieutenant-governor. At last attention was 
paid to their request, and Major-General Tracy Smythe was 
appointed lieutenant-governor in 1818. Meanwhile, the disputes 
between the two houses vith regard to the disposal of the 
revenues increased, and leijislation was a2;ain brousrht to a dead- 
lock. Governor Smythe sided with the council and dissolved 
Parliament, which had the effect of making the new house 
elected more tractable ; but, another dissolution taking place 
in the following year, 1820, caused by the death of George III., 
a new house was elected, which soon recommenced the ob- 
structionist policy. During the session of 1823 Governor 
Smythe died, and the house had new matters to engage its 
attention for a while, a series of curious events following closely 
on each other. The house was immediately prorogued l)y the 
chief justice, on the death of the governor, and Judge Chipman 
was sworn in as president of the council, and administrator ad 
interim. But his claim was disputed by the Hon. Christopher 
Billop, who was in his eighty-sixth year, and who issued a proc- 
lamation in St. John as administrator, by virtue of being senior 
councillor. He was too old, however, to attend to the duties 
of the office ; and the home office confirmed eTudge Chipman 
in the position. The judge opened Parliament in January, 
1824, and died suddenly, on the 9th of February, while the 
house was considering a bill providing for the interment of 
Governor Smythe in the parish church at Fredericton. The 
Hon. James Murray Bliss became president until the arrival, 
in August of the same year, of Sir Howard Douglas, who had 
been ap})ointed lieutenant-governor. During the administration 
of General Smythe the province continued to flourish, and new 
settlements were formed ; at the close of the war there was an 
influx of military settlers, who laid out the town of "Woodstock, 



338 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

the French squatters in that neighborhood moving up the river 
as far as jNIadawaska. About this time a settlement was also 
formed at Lock Lomond, near St. John, by a party of negroes, 
and the first settlements were also made at Dalhousie and 
Bathurst. Steam also began to make its Avay into the province, 
and a steamer plied between St. John and Fredcricton. But 
the people devoted themselves almost entirely to lumbering and 
ship-building ; agriculture was neglected ; no paius was taken 
to utilize the land from which the timber was cut, and the people 
were almost wholly dependent on the United States for their 
supply of provisions. The lumber trade had greatly increased, 
and now gave employment to about one hundred vessels at St. 
John, and probably half as many at Miramichi. 

6. In 1825 Lieutenant-Governor Douglas met Parliament, 
and urged the necessity for greater attention to agriculture, 
which was greatly neglected, as were also the roads of the prov- 
ince, which were allowed to run almost any way, without any 
definite plan ; and, as they were all paid for out of the general 
fund, and there Avas no such thing as a toll-gate in the whole 
province, the roads, as a rule, were badly built, badly kept in 
order, and very expensive. During the year 1824 the first 
census was taken, and the population of the province found to 
be seventy-four thousand. The summer of 1825 was one of 
the hottest and driest that had ever been experienced on the 
continent ; for over two months not a drop of rain fell in New 
Brunswick ; the earth was parched, the rivers were nearly dry, 
and the forests were scorched. But it was not by the sun's 
rays alone that the forest kings were shrunken and shrivelled, 
the fire-demon was abroad, and all through the latter part of 
September fires were raging in the bush, and gradually drawing 
nearer the settlements. The growth of the timber trade in the 
Miramichi district had caused flourishing villages to spring up 
along its banks ; foremost amongst these was Newcastle, the 
capital of Northumberland County, which had a court-house, 
jail, Presbyterian kirk, and about one thousand inhabitants. 
About five miles doAvn the river was the newly started settle- 
ment of Douglastown, and across the river was Chatham, the 
timber depot of Cunard & Company. 

7. On the 29th of September the court-house at Fredericton 
was burned, and several small fires were reported in the bush 
during the early days of October, while the dense masses of 
smoke hanging like a pall over the country, and pouring down 
in blinding rolls of darkness on the villages, told of coming 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 339 

(lisastor. Still there was no dread of any great calamity until 
the evening of the fatal 7tli of October, which was to Avitness 
so dire a catastrophe. All the day black, dense smoke had 
been piling up about A'ewcastle, until, before sundoAvn, the air 
Avas so tilled Avith smoke that it Avas almost impossil)lc to see. 
Then, as night approached, the lurid tiashes of the approaching 
conflagration l)egan to break through tlie deepening gloom la 
fitful l)ursts of brilliancy, AA'hile the short, sharp snaps of the 
crackling brushAA'ood Avere from time to time A^aried by the loud 
reports of the gigantic pines as they became a prey to the de- 
vouring element. Swift 1}', steadily, Avith sullen roar and angry 
flash, on came that moving, rolling Avail of living lire, SAveeping 
all before it in its ouAvard rush on the dcA'oted villaije of NeAV- 
castle. Resistance Avas in vain, and flight almost useless ; the 
only chance for safety Avas in the river and SAvampy ground, 
whither the Avretched inhabitants fled, and cowered down in the 
water and soft ooze, Avhilc the fierce flames SAvept in a terrible 
tornado oA^er them, carrying death and destruction in their path. 
All through that terrible night the Avild Avork of devastation 
went on, and when morning came again, only tAvelve houses, 
and the charred and blackened ruins of upAA^ards of two hundred 
more, Avere left to tell AA'here the flourishing A^illage of Ncav- 
castle had stood the night before ; Avhilc of the thousand happy 
inhabitants of the previous evening, one hundred and sixty had 
lost their Ha^cs either by the flames or in the cold embrace of 
the river in their eftorts to escape, and of the remainder nearly 
all were burnt, and many severely injured. DouglastoAvn suf- 
fered CA'cn Avorse, for only one house Avas left standing, and 
that, singular to say, contained the corpse of one Avho had died 
on the preA^ous day. The destruction done by this tremendous 
fire was incalculable; the loss to settlements, mills, etc., Avas 
about one million dollars ; but the extent burned over was more 
than five thousand square miles, and the loss of timber AA^as past 
calculation. The utmost sympathy Avas felt for the unfortunate 
sufferers, and large subscriptions Avere immediately raised in 
the sister provinces. Great Britain, and the United States ; but 
it AA^as many long days before the IMiramichi district recoA'ered 
from the efl'ects of that terrible scour2:ing Avith fire. 

8. The Maine boundary question had l)eeu a troublesome 
one ever since the Independence of the United States. Com- 
missions had been appointed, but had failed to agree as to the 
boundaries intended to be given by the treaty ; tho Americans 
interpreting t'^e terms used to mean one thing, and the British 



340 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

another. The quantity of hind thus churned by both was al)out 
twelve thousand scpare miles, and generally got to be known 
as "the disputed territory," — neither party occupying it. 
Every now and then little ebullitions of feeling would be shown 
by the Americans, who had always displayed a disposition to 
take forcible possession of this debated land ; and, in 1827, 
Governor Lincohi, of jMaine, made a hostile demonstration, 
whereupon a tilibustering party, under command of a man 
named Baker, made a dash into the MadaAvaska district and 
stuck up a pole with the "stars and stripes" attached to it, in 
token that he had "taken possession of the country in the name 
of the United Slates." He did not remain long in possession, 
hoAvcver, for the old French inhabitants, having informed Gov- 
ernor Douglas of the intrusion, he moved a body of troops up 
to the frontier and sent the sheriff to arrest Baker, which was 
done very quietly ; Baker was put in a cab, the flag was put in 
the sherifl''s pocket, the staff was put in the Are, and the "in- 
vasion" was at an end. Baker was taken to jail, and was 
afterwards tried before the Supreme Court at Fredericton, and 
lined. Meanwhile, Governor Lincoln got up a good deal of 
excitement, blustered to his heart's content, called out the 
militia, and threatened a general invasion ; but as he found Sir 
Howard Douo-las waiting for him on the British side of the 
frontier, with a small force of regulars, he decided not to do 
anything more than talk ; and shortly afterwards all excitement 
on the subject of the disputed territory was allayed by the sub- 
mission of the matter l>y Ijoth governments to the King of the 
Netherlands for a settlement of the boundary in dispute. 

9. A o-reat chansre was now coming over the commercial 
policy of Great Britain. Hitherto the most jealously protected 
country in regard to manut^ictures and productions of all kinds, 
both at home and in the colonies, the long unsuccessful efi'orts 
of the free traders began to be heard ; the cry of " Buy in the 
cheapest markets, sell in the dearest," was raised, and one by 
one the barriers to a free interchange of commercial articles 
were bein<2r thrown down. Hitherto the colonial commerce had 
been exceedingly limited in its scope, being confined to England 
and the English colonies ; and even on the English trade there 
were restrictions, and colonial vessels were not allowed the 
advantage of the English coasting trade, — that is, going from 
one English port to another in search of a market, — but were 
obliged to unload and load again at the port for Avhich they 
cleared when leavins: the colon v. This was all changed in 1825, 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 341 

under the Canning administration, when the principles of free 
trade tirst began to gain the ascendency. All English ports 
were thrown open to colonial trade, and all colonial ports were 
open to Great Britain and all her allies. This was a great im- 
petus to the trade of New Brunswick ; numbers of vessels visited 
her shore in search of luml^cu" ; ship-l)uilding flourished, and the 
people saw gigantic fortunes rapidly accumulating before them. 
But there were reverses to come ; tirst was the Miramichi tire, 
and next the extra competition in trade which the breaking 
down of the protection barriers gave rise to. Under the colonial 
protection arrangement the Americans were excluded from the 
West Indies ; and a large and profitable trade had sprung up 
between those islands and the maritime provinces, the islands 
taking fish and lumber in large quantities in exchange for sugar, 
rum, and molasses. But in 1830 the West India market was 
thrown open to the Americans, who could not only supply fish 
and lumber, but breadstufi's and provisions, of which the islands 
import large quantities, and the trade of New Brunswick was 
very seriously injured. 

10. At this time colonial timber was still very heavily pro- 
tected, there being a duty of al)out fifteen dollars a ton on 
timber imported into England from the Baltic; this was, of 
course, an immense advantage to New Brunswick ; and, although 
the people grumbled a great deal at the opening of the West 
India ports, and the consequent competition against which they 
had to contend, still they felt moderately well satisfied as long 
as they had a monopoly of the timber trade in the English 
market. But free trade was now advancing with giant strides ; 
monopoly after monopoly w^as moving down before it, and 
it was not long before a repeal of the duty on timber from 
the Baltic was agitated, so that England might get her timljer 
as cheap as she could, no matter whether it came from the 
colonies or from a foreign country. The proposal called forth 
the most strenuous opposition in the provinces. Suffering 
severely already from American competition in the West India 
trade ; nearly ruined by the terrible fire at Miramichi, and 
thoroughly disheartened and discouraged, the people saw nothing 
but utter ruin before them if the Baltic timber was admitted free 
into England ; and their dissatisfaction was so great that it 
almost took the form of open disaffection. The Legislature for- 
warded earnest petitions against the proposed measure, setting 
forth the inunense damage it would do to the province, and the 
press and the people unanimously condemned it. It happened 



342 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

that Sir Howard Douglas had been called to England to give 
evidence with regard to the disputed territory, and he warmly 
espoused the cause of the province, publishing a very clever 
little pamphlet, in which he clearly showed the bad policy of 
repealing the timber duties, and throwing the colony into utter 
ruin at a time when it was only slowly recovering from a most 
terrible visitation by God. The pamphlet did its work ; the 
bill was defeated, and great was the joy of the New Brunswickcrs 
thereat ; but the victory cost them a popular governor, who, for 
fourteen years, had labored conscientiously for the good of the 
province. In opposing the repeal of the timber tax 8ir Howard 
had ojjposed the government which had appointed him ; and, 
as he had virtually defeated his own party, he could no longer 
hold ofiice under it, and therefore resigned. The people were 
extremely sorry to lose him, and the Assembly showed its ap- 
preciation of his services by voting him a handsome service of 
plate. Hon. William lilack temporarily administered the aiiairs 
of the province until the appointment of Sir Alexander Camp- 
bell, who arrived in the fall of 1831. 



CHAPTER XXIX. 

NEW BRUNSWICK FROM 1832 TO 18G7. 

THE FIGHT AND CONQUEST OF RESPONSIBLE GOVERNMENT — DEVELOPMENT OF 
THE PROVINCE CONFEDERATION. 

1 . The struggle for responsible government was character- 
ized much the same in New Brunswick as in Nova Scotia. The 
reformers fought in a constitutional uay. The province suticred 
from the government of a "family compact " much the same as 
that which died so hard in Canada and in Nova Scotia ; but that 
in NcAv Brunswick was the least objectionable of them all, and 
more fairly rei)resented the interests of the people. Lcnuiel 
A. y\^ilmot became the leadc-r of the reform i)arty in New 
Brunswick, and in that respect was not unlike Howe in Nova 
Scotia. A sing-ular fact was, that the governors in - both 
provinces. New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, w^ere named Camp- 
bell, and, although they were not relatives, they appeared much 
alike in disposition. Both were strong Tories, stern, determined 
soldiers, and both watched with jealousy any and all innovations 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 343 

Oil tlic royal prerogative. New Brunswick took the lead in 
political reform. In 1832 the legislative council, which had 
hitherto been also the executive council, was made a separate 
body ; the grievances of New Brunswick at this time were of a 
su])stantial kind. The crown hind department was badly mis- 
managed, in the interests of lumber speculators. The "casual 
and territorial" revenues also became a subject of dispute, 
either branch of the government striving to control them. In 
1832 a resolution was passed, asking the governor to furnish the 
house with an account of the receipts and expenditures of this 
fund ; but the request was curtly refused l)y the governor. 
Foiled in one quarter the Assembly determined to try in 
another, and appointed Messrs. E. B. Chandler and Charles 
Simonds as delegates to treat with the imperial authorities for 
the surrender of the casual and territorial revenues. The dele- 
gates succeeded in arranging terms with Mr. 8taidey, then 
colonial secretary, in 1833 ; but the arrangement was not carried 
out, owing either to a misunderstanding, or to some secret in- 
fluence being at work against the Assembly. 

2. About this time there was some dissatisfaction with 
regard to the New Brunswick and Nova Scotia Land Company, 
which had been formed in London in 1831, and Avas incorporated 
in 1834. This foreign company was sold a tract of land between 
the St. John and Miramichi rivers, covering about five hundred 
thousand acres, for a sum of lifty-six thousand i)ounds, of which 
twenty-one thousand pounds were paid down. The object of the 
company was to relieve some of the overcrowded labor districts 
of England by removing the labor to a place where it could 
have a chance of being usefully and remuneratively employed 
in clearing the land, making roads, liuilding houses, etc. ; great 
inducements were also held out to naval and militaiy officers to 
settle, and to good, practical farmers to make their homes there. 
The company was calculated to do good to the province ; but the 
Assembly did not like the idea of so large a portion of the 
public lands being given to a private confpany Avithout the con- 
sent of the representatives of the people l)eing asked; and at 
the session of 183G the question of the right of the Assembly 
Avas again brought up by Mr. L. A. AVilmot moving an address 
to the governor for a return of all the sales of land made during 
the past year. The governor only furnished a general state- 
ment, AA'hich increased the dissatisfaction of the house, as it 
knew ho had received instructions from the home office to yield 
considerably to the demands of the Assembly. 



344 HISTORY OF UOMINIOX of CANADA, 

3. The house now moved a formal address to the kiiiff, 
setting foi-th its grievances in full in the matters of crown lands, 
revenue, and the control of Ihe pubhc funds, and Messrs. Crane 
and AVihnot were appointed del(;gates to present the address iu 
Eughind. The del(;gates were most kindly received by the 
colonial secretary. Lord Glcnelg, and due consideration given 
to their complaints. After several interviews everything that 
they demanded was granted, with some slight modifications, 
and the draft of a bill for the sui)port of the civil grncrnment 
of the province was prepared. 1'he casual territorial revenue 
was given up in consideration of the Assembly voting a per- 
manent civil list of fourteen thousand five hundred pounds a 
year. The salaries were left as they were, but with the under- 
standing that s(;nie of them woiild be reduced when new appoint- 
ments were made. The management of the crown lands was 
vested in the governor and council ; but they were made par- 
tially responsible to the house, by having to furnish a detailed 
account of the department within fourteen days after the opening 
of l''arliament. Two j)rinciijhs which the iVssembly had been 
contending for were allowed, Ijut not positively orderer] : these 
were representative government, by having members of the 
majority of the Assembly called to the executive council ; and 
the members of all parties should be called to the legislative 
council. Another reform granted was that all grants and leases 
of lands were declared void, unless sold by public auction, after 
due notice, to the highest bidder. 

4. The delegates and their friends were jubilant, and thought 
that all difficulty had been overc(;me ; but they were mistaken ; 
such sweeping clianges coidd not beeffected without opposition, 
and although it did not last very long it was strong f<jr a while. 
Sir Archibald CaiiiplK!)! and the executive council had no in- 
tention of allowing the control of the revenue to be taken out 
of their hands, without an effort to retain it, and, accordingly, 
representations were made to the colonial secretary that the 
amf;unt of fourtcfMi thousand five hundred |)Ounds was not suf- 
ficient to cover the expense of the civil list ; the salaries of the 
judges of circuit courts and contingent expenses having been 
omitted. Strong exception was also taken to the clause referring 
to the sale of land by public auction, it being urged that its 
enforcement wouhl do great injustice to a large class of bona 
fide settlers, avIio had only squatters' rights, and would not be 
able to show a clear title to the lands they had reclaimed from 
the wilderness and settled on, if this clause was insisted on. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 345 

The governor had even strong-er views on the subject, and did 
not hesitate to express them freely. The casual and territorial 
revenue had for some years been exceeding the civil list, and the 
consequence was that a fund of about eight hundred thousand 
dollars had accumulated, the expenditure of which Sir Archiljald 
thought it would be unwise to trust in the hands of the Assem- 
bly, who, he felt assured, would rapidly squander it. His own 
pet scheme was to foster this surplus and add to it, so that in 
a few years the interest on it would supply the civil list, and 
the casual and territorial revenues could be used for general 
improvements without other taxation. He therefore, in answer 
to Lord Glenelg's despatch containing a draft of the proposed 
civil-list bill, took exception to the bill, and suggested a number 
of amencbnents, Avhich virtually nuUitied it. 

5. The Legislature met in Januar}-, 1837, and Sir Archibald, 
Avho had not yet heard of the fate of his amendments, ^vas anxious 
to give time. He submitted the civil-list bill, but intimated 
that in the event of its being passed he would not assent to it 
unless a " suspending clause " was added, Avhich Avould render 
the bill inoperative until the king's pleasure was known with 
regard to the amendments proposed by the governor. This 
aroused the suspicions of the Assembly, the members fearing 
that if the colonial secretary appi'oved of the governors amend- 
ments the bill might be so altered that the law officers of his 
majesty might recommend him to withold his assent to it. The 
bill was passed in both houses by large majorities, and a depu- 
tation of the house waited on the governor to uro-e him to orive 
his assent to it, which he flatly refused to do unless the suspend- 
ing clause w\as added. On the seventh it Avas discovered that 
the Hon. George F. Street had gone to London on a secret 
mission, which the Assembly at once interpreted as meaning a 
mission inimical to its interests, and hastily passed a series 
of indignant resolutions, strongly condemning the council and 
the governor, and demanding the latter's recall. An address to 
the king was prepared and presented to the governor, who 
received the censure of the house with the utmost indilference, 
and did not gratify the deputation by informing them that he 
had placed his resignation in the hands of Lord Glenelg, sooner 
than carry out that nobleman's instructions. The house at once 
appointed Messrs. Crane and AYilmot to present the address to 
the king, and they left Fredericton on the Dth of February amid 
a most enthusiastic demonstration of the people. 

6. The home government was now fully determined to grant 



346 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

the reforms demaiidecl, and to fully admit the principle of rep- 
resentative government; and, as !Sir Archibald Campbell would 
not obey the instructions of the colonial minister, his resignation 
was accepted, and Sir John Harvey appointed in his place. 
The mission of Hon G. F. Street utterly failed in getting any 
moditication of the civil-list bill, and it became law on the 17th 
of Julv. Thus was responsible government fairly introduced, 
and great Avas the rejoicing of the reformers thereat ; the dele- 
gates Avere received Avith the greatest enthusiasm, and Mr. 
Crane Avas called to the executive council,- Avhile Mr. Wilmot 
Avas made king's council ; indeed, so enthusiastic did the As- 
sembly l)ecome that it requested Lord Glenelg to alloAv a full- 
length portrait of himself to be painted, Avliich Avas done, and 
the picture noAV hangs at the back of the speaker's chair in the 
House of Assembly, Fredericton. The passing of the ciA'il-list 
bill cj[uelled all political excitement in Ncav BrunsAvick, and that 
province Avas happily spared any of the sad scenes Avhich marred 
the years 1837-8 in Upper and LoAver Canada. 

7 . The government of Sir John Harvey Avas a most pacific 
one, and everything went smoothly Avithin the province until 
January, 1839, Avhen another difficulty Avith the United States 
occurred on the old subject of dispute, — the JNIaine boundary. 
The King of the Netherlands, to Avhom the matter had been 
referred, gave a decision, in 1831, which gave the Americans 
the lion's share of the territory ; but, as it did not give them the 
Avhole of it, they refused to be bound by the award, and the 
matter Avas as far from settlement as possible. Early in the 
month of January, 1839, some lawless persons from Ncav Bruns- 
Avick Avent into the disputed territory to cut timber, when 
Governor Fairfield, of Maine, sent a large party of constables, 
under command of the sheriti', to expel the intruders and seize 
their lumber. A tight ensued, Avhicli resulted in a mutual 
capture ; the Americans captured McLaughlan, the British 
Avarden, and carried him otf to Augusta ; while the British made 
the American hind-agent, Mclntyre, a prisoner, and locked him 
up in Fredericton jail. Both provinces at once Avent ablaze with 
excitement, and intemperate Avords threatened to be soon fol- 
lowed by still more intemperate acts. GoA'crnor Fairfield sent 
two thousand men, under Colonel Jarvis, to support the sheritf. 
Sir John Harvey issued a proclamation claiming the disputed 
territory as British property, and calling on the GoA'ernor of 
IMaine to AvithdraAV his troops ; to Avhich that functionary re- 
sponded by a counter-proclamation, claiming the territory as 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 34:7 

part of the State of Maine, and calling out ten thousand State 
militia to support the claim. 

8. Sir John now took decided steps, and despatched Col; 
Maxwell, with the 3Gth and GOth regiments and a train of artil- 
lery, to the Upper St. John, to Avatch the movements of the 
American militia. The people of the province were most en- 
thusiastic ; volunteers from St. John, Fredericton, and other 
points turned out in great numbers and joined the army of the 
Madawaska, as Maxwell's force was called, and opened commu- 
nication with Sir John Colborne, at Qael)ec, and Sir John 
Harvey, at Fredericton, while the Nova Scotia Legislature, 
which was in session at the time, became so excited that the 
members of the Assembly not only voted one hundred thousand 
dollars and eight thousand men to assist the province, but so far 
forgot their legislative dignity as to give three cheers for the 
king, which were caught up and reechoed by the crowd in the 
gallery. The excitement was also very great in the United 
States ; but the democratic party did not want to needlessly 
risk another Avar with Great Britain, and President Van Buren 
adopted a peaceful policy ; conciliatory notes passed between 
the English minister at Washington and the Secretary of State, 
and Gen. Winfield Scott was despatched to the frontier with 
full powers to settle the difficulties with Sir John Harvey. 
The war party in the United States, of course, made a good 
deal of noise, and Daniel Webster made a little temporary 
political capital by calling Van Buren a coward, and declaring 
that if Great Britain would not conform to the treaty of 1783 
the United States would take forcible possession of the disputed 
territory on the next 4th of July ; but the bulk of the people 
were in favor of not disturbing the peace between the two 
countries, and Webster found out, three years later, that he 
could gain more by negotiation than he could ever accomplish 
by force. 

9. Scott's first step, on reaching Augusta, was to order the 
ten thousand militia. Governor Fairtield had ordered out, to 
remain at home, and this had the immediate eftect of quieting 
excitement. He then entered into friendly negotiations with 
Sir John Harvey, and they speedily arrived at a peaceful solu- 
tion of the ditticulty. It was agreed that the Maine militia 
should be withdrawn, and Great Britain undertook to prevent 
any incursions into the disputed territory until the question of 
the boundary Avas settled. This agreement Avas afterwards rati- 
fied by the British and American ministers ; but it left the 



348 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

question of the boundary as unsettled as ever. We may as 
well continue the history of this boundary question to its close. 
Both governments ordered fresh surveys, and each lot of engi- 
neers made out a very clear case in favor of the pretensions of 
their own country ; but finally, to avoid forther trouble, and 
the possi]:)ility of Avar, two commissioners were appointed to 
settle the matter, the award to be linal. 

10. The American government appointed Daniel Webster, 
and the British government sent out Lord Ashburton, a very 
amiable old gentleman, who let Webster have almost entirely 
his own way, and who consented to giving up seven thousand 
square miles of the best timbered and agricultural land out of 
the twelve thousand in dispute. The people of New Brunswick 
were not very well pleased at the decision arrived at, but they 
were fain to be content Avith the tinal settlement, on some 
terms, of a question Avhich Avas a perpetual menace of the peace 
of the Avhole nation. 

11. Sir John Harvey administered the affairs of the prov- 
ince until 1841, when he was recalled on account of a slight 
difference betAveen him and Lord Sydenham, then governor- 
general. He had the happy knack of making himself popular, 
and although he Avas subjected to bitter attacks from a small 
portion of the press published in the interest of the party 
Avhich opposed the surrender of the casual and territory rev- 
enues, still he gained the good-Avill of the people, and the 
Legislature voted him a service of plate on his recall, in evi- 
dence of the peace and harmony Avliich had existed between it 
and the executive durino; his administration. Sir John shoAvcd 
a decided tendency in favor of popular government, and that 
the acknowledged principle of responsible goA^ernment Avas not 
carried into more active effect was through no fault of hls.^ 
Political parties Avere more evenly balanced in Ncav Brunswick 
than in Canada and NoA^a Scotia ; a spirit of greater modera- 
tion actuated its people. Some of the leaders, Avho had been 
instrumental in obtaining the concession granted by the civil- 
list bill, noAV rested content. AVhen a resolution to giA^e effect 
to the principle laid doAvn in Lord John Russell's despatch on 
the tenure of office Avas introduced into the Legislature, it Avas 
defeated l)y the casting vote of the speaker, Charles Simonds.^ 
Sir John Harvey Avas succeeded by Sir AVilliam Colebi-ooke, 
Avho did not find the province in a very flourishing condition. 

1 Archer's History of Canada. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 349 

The fears of Sir Archibald Campbell had been justified ; the 
Assembly had no sooner got possession of the hundred and fifty 
thousand pounds surplus to the credit of casual and territorial 
revenue, than they had begun to spend it lavishly and extrav- 
agantly, and by 1842 it was not only all gone, but the prov- 
ince was in debt and wanted to raise a loan. This was rather 
" a feather in the cap " of the opponents of the surrender of the 
casual aud territorial revenue, and their satisfaction was in- 
creased when the colonial secretary informed the Legislature 
that their reckless manner of ^'oting away the public funds had 
injured the credit of the province. 

12. The first year of Sir William Colebrooke's administra- 
tion was not a fortunate one for the province ; St. John was 
visited by a severe fire, and the province Avas subjected to one 
of those periodical depressions in the lumber trade which will 
occur once in a while in every trade as a wholesome check on 
over-production and over-trading ; the revenues fell off con- 
siderably, and the prosperity of the province was momentarily 
checked, but soon began to flow on again. A determined 
stand for responsible government de facto was made by the 
reform party at the general election of 1842, but the people 
generally took no interest in the matter ; they were thoroughly 
conservative, and quite content to let things remain as they 
were ; so the reformers were generally defeated at the polls. 
The Leg-islaturc showed its conservatism by votinsr a coni2:ratu- 
latory address to the governor-general, Sir Charles ]Metcalfe, 
for a despatch he forwarded to Sir William Colelirookc in 1842, 
in which he claimed the right of the crown to make appoint- 
ments, and recommended a reconstruction of the legislative 
council so that all political parties as well as all religious de- 
nominations should be represented in it. This was contrary to 
the spirit of Lord John Russell's despatch with ]-egard to 
appointments ; but the Assembly applauded it, and had an 
opportunity the very next year to show its inconsistency by 
objecting to the first appointment made by Sir William Cole- 
brooke, of which we shall speak l)y and by. Some very serious 
riots occurred in Northumberland County during the election of 
1842. The elections then — as until quite recently — spread 
over many days, and parties were thereby enabled to visit a 
variety of polling-places. A party of disorderly persons, who 
were opposed to the return of INIr. Ambrose Seelt, the reform 
candidate, organized for a tour from parish to parish, and 
destroyed so much property and created so much disorder that 



350 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

a party of soldiers had to be sent from Fredericton to disperse 
them. Mr. Harper, in his " History of New Brunswick," draws 
the following untlattering picture of St. John in 1842 : " De- 
structive fires among the buildings of St. John, and the pros- 
pect of a depressing change in British duties on lumber, with 
an overstocked market, gave an unhappy look to that com- 
mercial centre. More than four thousand of its people were 
dependent upon public charity, while over three hundred were 
on the limits for debt. Yet the unruly had spirit enough left 
to cpiarrel over the silly emblem of an Irish party, which had 
been placed on a flag-pole. The rumor of coming strife had 
been abroad all day, and at night a crowd from the ofiended 
faction paraded the streets, insulting other citizens and howling 
like maniacs. Afi'airs appeared in an misettled state, but the 
energy of the mayor and the arrests he made quelled the dis- 
turbance. The same feeling, however, flamed out again on the 
subsequent 12th of July. In the procession of that occasion, 
and out of it, men were prepared for deadly combat. At the 
foot of the principal street, on the spot where the loyalists had 
quoted their motto from Virgil, fortunati quorum jam mae- 
nia surgunty the disgraceful scene of citizen striving against 
citizen, with knife and bludgeon and pistol, was witnessed. 
Many persons Avere killed, hundreds were wounded ; all unlucky 
victims of the storm which cleared the way for future peace and 
good-will among the people of St. John." 

13. The question as to the right of appointment which the 
Assembly had endoi'sed as belonging to the governor was soon 
tested. On Christmas day, 1844, the Hon. William Odell, 
provincial secretary, died, after having filled the office since 
1818, in which year he succeeded to it on the death of his 
father, the Hon. and the Rev. Jonathan Odell, who was the 
first provincial secretary of the province. Sir William Cole- 
brooke, considering that the right of appointment was entirely 
in his own hand, appointed his son-in-law, Mr. Reade, pro- 
visionally ; but the action called forth opposition from both 
parties, reformers and conservatives, and four members of the 
executive council resigned their seats. Some of the members 
took rather roundabout grounds for objecting to the appoint- 
ment ; thus Messrs. Johnson, Chandler, and Pazen acknowl- 
edged the right of the crown to appoint whoever it pleased, 
but objected to this particular appointment, because Lord 
Glenelg, in 1835, had laid down a rule that only natives of the 
province, or settled inhabitants, should be endowed with public 



ENGLAND, AXD THE UXITED STATES. 851 

appointments ; and they could not regard Mr, Readc as a settled 
inhabitant of the province, although he might become such if he 
was contirmed in his appointment ; but they objected to paying 
so high a price for that honor. The Hon. Mr. Wilmot took far 
more advanced views, and urged this as a favorable opportunity 
for introducing the practice of responsible government ; he 
argued that the provincial secretaryship should be made into a 
department of the government, and a member of the executive 
council appointed to it, who should be responsible to the As- 
sembly, and hold office only so long as he retained the confi- 
deuce of the house, instead of being a crown appointment for 
life. Mr. AVilmot was only a little iu advance of liis time, but 
lived to see this principle carried out. Neither the house nor 
the people were ready for so radical a change at this time, 
however, and it was some years before it was accomplished. 
Finding the appointment of Mr. Ivcadc so distasteful the colo- 
nial secretary did not confirm it, and the Hon. J. Simcoc 
Saunders was appointed provincial secretary. 

14. The period from 1845 to 1848 was not a very eventful 
one in the province, Avhich flourished moderately, and there 
was nothing of a very exciting nature iu politics until the latter 
year. There were some uneasiness and dissatisfaction, for the 
crown lands were mismanaged, the revenue carelessly expended, 
and the appropriation of a surplus of the civil-list fund for the 
purpose of surveying lands in Madawaska was considered a 
stretch of the royal prerogative by the governor ; but no serious 
effort to materially change the order of things was made until 
1848. In the previous year Earl Gray, the colonial secretarj^, 
had sent a despatch to Sir John llarvey. Governor of Nova 
Scotia, in which he clearly defined the principles of responsible 
government as applicable to the provinces. He held that mem- 
bers of the executive council, who directed the policy of the 
country, should hold office only so long as they had the support 
of a majority of the house, and that all heads of departments 
should only hold office on pleasure ; that all officers under gov- 
ernment were to be excluded from sitting in either l>ranch of 
the Legislature, and that while holding office only during good 
behavior they were not to l)e subject to removal simply on a 
change of government. At the session of 1848 jNIr. Charles 
Fisher, member for York, holding that this despatch Was as appli- 
cable to New Brunswick as to Nova Scotia, introduced a reso- 
lution fully approving of it, and accepting it as the rule for the 
province. The debate was opened on the 24th February, and 



352 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

the resolution was carried by a large majority on a coalition 
vote, both conservatives and liberals voting for it. 

15. Thus was responsible government tinally recognized as 
thfe rule of the province. This was the last important act in 
the administration of Sir Yv^illiam Colebrooke, who Avas ap- 
pointed to the governorship of British Guiana in 1848, and was 
succeeded in New Brunswick by Sir Ednumd Walker Head, 
grandson of a baronet of the same name mIio had been forced 
to flee from the States with the loyalists of 1783. Sir Edmund 
had the honor of being the first civilian regularly appointed to 
the lieutenant-governorship of the province. The career of 
New Brunswick, from the establishment of i"esponsil)le govern- 
ment in 1848, to confederation in 18G7, was comparatively 
uneventful, with the exception of the agitations on the ques- 
tions of the Intercolonial Kailway and Confederation, both of 
which subjects we have freely treated in a previous chapter, and 
it is useless to go over the same ground here. There was no 
party spirit in the province, to speak of, until 1855, the principal 
agitation being on the subject of retrenchment ; the cry for 
reform in this direction being led by Wihnot, and his principal 
points of attack being the salaries of the judges. The judges 
protested vigorously against any reduction, and claimed that 
when the civil list w^as placed at fourteen thousand ii^'e hundred 
pounds it included their salaries at certain fixed rates, and that 
to make any reduction would be a breach of faith. On this 
ground they appealed to England, and were supported by Eail 
Grey, which caused some dissatisfaction in the houses, and the 
sul)ject formed " a bone of contention " for some time. "Another 
source of political strife arose from free-trade discussions. The 
high imperial duty on flour had led to the erection of several 
flour-mills near St. John. Afterwards, when this duty was 
withdrawn by England, the owners of the mills sought the 
Legislature to protect their trade by a provincial duty on all 
imported flour. The subject gave scope to the orators of the 
house, and the tax was legalized. Next session the protec- 
tionists again appeared with petitions. They asked for pro- 
tective duties on all provincial industries, and a flsherman's 
bounty ; but while the Assembly considered the whole subject, 
a despatch from Lord Grey was presented, in which dissent 
was recorded against the bill granting a bounty to hemp- 
growers. This, viewed as an unnecessary interference, quick- 
ened into rage the feeling against the despatch system, and the 
rule of Downing street. The repeal of the navigation laws 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



353 



added to tho vexation. Mr. Wark, by his rcsolutioDs in the 
Assembly, tried to show that responsible government in New 
Brunswick wag yet only a name. In face of the earl's decree, 
another member introdnced a bill to provide for lishery bounties ; 
while, during the debate, the despotism of the colonial office 
was in everybody's mouth. The house cheered the bill in its 
third reading, and voted three thousand pounds as a bounty- 
fund. But the defiance was a mere shadow, for the legislative 
council rejected the bill, and thus brought aljout the reaction of 
quiet. 

IG. Tho visit of the Prince of Wales, in 1860, was made 
the occasion of great and general rejoicing in St. John, and 
never did the city of the loyalists show itself more loyal than in 
welcoming our heir-apparent. The "Trent" affair, in 1861, 
threw St. John, in common with other Canadian cities, into a 
momentary state of excitement. Forts were repaired, and 
great activity evinced for a while ; l)ut the danger soon passed, 
and the city fell back into its normal condition. The session 
of 1866 was the most exciting known in New Brunswick for many 
years. Tho province hud pronounced, in what would appear to 
have been most unmistakable 
terms, against confederation, 
and Hon. A. J. Smith was at the 
head of a stronsf anti-confeder- 
ate ministr}' ; still it was ru- 
mored that a decisive step 
would be taken to force con- 
federation, and an exciting time 
was expected. Governor Gor- 
don opened the session by in- 
forming tho house, in very plain 
and strong language, that the 
imperial government earnestly 
desired a union of all the 
British Kortli American prov- 
inces ; and this was followed 
up by a motion of want of confi- 
dence in the government on the 
general administration of the 

aflairs of the province. While the debate was progressing, a 
highly dramatic effect was thrown in by the attempt of the 
Fenians to invade the province. A number of these misguided 
fanatics, who proposed to " liberate " Ireland by putting Canadians 




354: HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

in bondage, assemljled at Portland, and embarked for Eastport, 
Maine, Avith the intention of crossing the St. Croix river and 
making a descent upon St. Andrews and St. Stephens. The 
15th regiment, under Colonel Cole, was promptly despatched 
to the frontier, with a number of volunteers, and occupied 
Campobello, St. Andrews, and St. Stephens ; but the Fenians, 
finding a warm reception prejDared for them, wisely postponed 
their visit, and all was soon quiet on the frontier again. But the 
demonstration had had an effect the Fenians little calculated on ; 
it had strengthened the bonds between the provinces and the 
mother country, showed the necessity for a closer union of the 
provinces for defence, and made confederation, virtually, an 
accomplished fact. The legislative council passed an address 
expressing a desire that the imperial government would unite the 
provinces upon the Quebec scheme. The governor promptly 
endorsed the action of the council, and the Smith ministry in 
the house suddenly found itself without any supporters, and 
was forced to resign. Mr. Tilley was called on to form a 
ministry. A general election sent a large majority of confed- 
erates to the house. The union resolutions were triumphantly 
passed, and on the 1st of July, 1867, the Dominion of Canada 
came into existence as the youngest of nations. 

17. The following is a list of the governors from the forma- 
tion of the province to confederation : — 

Gen. Thomas Carleton, Governor 1784 

Hon. G. G. Ludlow, President 1786 

Hon. E. Winslow, President 1803 

Col. G. Johnston, President 1808 

Gen. W. Hunter, Governor 1809 

Gen. W. Balfour, President 1811 

Gen. G. S. Smythe, President 1812 

Gen. Sir J. Saumarez, President . . . . . . . . 1813 

Col. H. W. Hailes, President 1816 

Gen. G. S. Smythe, Governor 1817 

Hon. Ward Chipman, President 1823 

Hon. J. M. Bliss, President 1824 

Gen. Sir H. Douglas, Governor 1825 

Hon. W. Black, President 1829 

Gen. Sir A. Campbell, Governor 1832 

Gen. Sir John Harvey, Governor 1837 

Sir W. M. G. Colebrooke, Governor 1841 

Sir E. W. Head, Governor 1848 

Hon. J. H. T. M. Sutton, Governor 1854 

Hon. A. Gordon, Governor 1862 

Sir C. Hastings Dovle, Lieut.-Governor. .... 1866 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 355 



CHAPTER XXX. 

PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND, 1663 TO 1787. 

EAKLY SETTLEMENTS ADMINISTRATION OF GOVERNOU PATTERSON — THE LAND 

QUESTION, 

1. Prince Edward Island, at first called St. John, as we 
have seen in the early part of this work, was not settled until 
1663, when France thought to establish on the island an exten- 
sion of her colonial empire. In that year the island, together 
with the Magdalen Islands, were granted to Sieur Doublet, by 
the French king, for purposes of trade ; but he did nothing 
beyond establishing a few small fishing-stations on the island. 
The first settlements of any considerable importance were made 
by the French who removed from Acadia after the treaty of 
1713, the island still remaining under French rule, while 
Acadia was transferred to tlie English. This movement was 
followed by the establishment of a post and garrison at Port La 
Joie (Charlottetown), under the protection of the French fort 
at Cape Breton, which also remained in the possession of the 
French after the treaty of Utrecht. 13ut even in 1752 the entire 
inhabitants of the island numljered but one thousand three 
hundred and fifty-four, notwithstanding the favorable accounts 
of the soil and climate which had been widely circulated. From 
this period to the conquest by the English, the progress of 
the population and wealth on the island was not rapid, yet these 
were gradually increased and expanded until 1758, when the 
total number of inhabitants, from the best accounts that can be 
authenticated, was about five thousand, and probably this in- 
crease was to a greater extent indebted to the expulsion of the 
Acadians in Nova Scotia, in 1755, than anything else. We can 
record little or nothing of French rule in the island of St. eTohn ; 
there were no events connected with it beyond those mentioned, 
which are worthy of particular remark here. The treaty of 
peace between France and England, in 1763, by which all the 
possessions of the former in North America were ceded to the 
latter, caused a great change in the destiny of Prince Edward 
Island. That island, together with Cape Breton and what is 
now the province of New Brunswick and part of the State of 



356 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

Maine, was included in the government of Nova Scotia, and so 
continued until 1770. 

2. In 1764 the British government ordered a survey of the 
coast of its newly acquired American possessions, and Captain 
Holland was instructed to superintend the northern portion of 
the survey, and to commence at the island of St. John. He 
arrived at the island in October, 1764, and found very poor 
accommodation at Fort Amherst, which he described as a poor 
stockade, with scarcely barracks enough to accommodate the 
garrison, and he was obliged to provide winter-quarters for 
himself. As to the inhabitants he says, " There are about thirty 
Acadian families on the island, who are regarded as prisoners, 
and kept on the same footing as those at Halifax. They are 
extremely poor, and maintain themselves by their industry in 
gardening, fishing, fowling, etc. The few remaining houses in 
the different parts of the island are very bad, and the quantity of 
cattle is but very inconsiderable." The captain evidently spared 
no time or pains in completing his survey, for in October, 1765, 
he sent home Mr. Robinson with plans of the island, as well as 
of the Magdalen Islands, and an account of the soil, climate,^ 
etc., in which he speaks in even more glowing terms of both 
than had the French explorers who had previously reported on 
the capabilities of the island. Previous to the reception of this 
report, in December, 1763, the Earl of Egmont, then first 
lord of the admiralty, had presented a petition praying for a 
grant of the whole island, which he intended to turn into a sort 
of feudal barony, with himself as lord paramount, having forty 
hundreds, or baronies, with eight hundred manors and forty 
townships, each of one hundred lots containing five acres. This 
plan was vigorously pushed for some time, but the lords of 
trade and plantations opposed the scheme, and finally, on the 
third application for a grant of the island, flatly refused to en- 
tertain it. By the survey of Captain Holland the island was 
found to contain three hundred and thirty-five thousand four 
hundred acres, only about ten thousand of which were estimated 
as unfit for cultivation. Although the lords of trade and planta- 
tions refused to entertain Lord Egmont's scheme, yet they 
agreed to distribute the island among persons who had — or 
were supposed to have — claims upon the government; and, in 
accordance with this plan, nearly the whole island was dis- 
tributed by a lottery, which was drawn in the presence of the 
Board of Trade, on the 23d July, 1767 ; the claims of all peti- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 357 

tioners for allotments having been previously adjudicated on 
by the board. 

3. The conditions under which the distribution was made 
was as follows : " On twenty-six specified lots or townships a 
quit-rent of six shillings on every hundred acres was reserved, 
on twenty-nine lots four shillings, and on eleven lots two 
shillings, payable annually on one half of the grant at the expira- 
tion of five years, and on the whole at the expiration of ten 
years after the date of the grants. A reservation of such parts 
of each lot as might afterwards be found necessary for fortifica- 
tions or public purposes, and of a hundred acres for a church 
and glebe, and of fifty acres for a school-master, was made, five 
hundred feet from high-water mark being reserved for the pur- 
pose of a free fishery. Deposits of gold, silver, or coal, were 
reserved for the crown. It was stipulated that the grantee of 
each township should settle the same within ten years from the 
date of the grant, in the proportion of one person for every two 
hundred acres ; that -such settlers should be Europeans, foreign 
Protestants, or such persons as had resided in British North 
America for two years previous to the date of the grant ; and, 
finally, that if one-third of the land was not so settled within 
four years from the date of the grant, the whole shall be for- 
feited."' About six thousand acres were reserved for the 
king, and lots forty and fifty-nine were reserved for Messrs. 
Mill, Cathcart, and Higgins, and Messrs. Spencer, Muir, and 
Cathcart, in consideration of their having established fisheries, 
and otherw^ise improved the island ; and all the remainder of the 
island was distributed. Very few of the grantees had any in- 
tention of settling on the island, and either sold out or alienated 
their property ; so that in the course of a few years the bulk of 
it fell into the hands of a few absentee proprietors. The 
grantees, however, were clamorous for thei^L* political rights, 
and in 1786 petitioned for a separation from Nova Scotia and 
government of their own, which petition was granted in 1770, 
when there were only five resident proprietors on the island and 
about one hundred and fifty families. 

4. Captain William Patterson, one of the grantees, was ap- 
l^ointed governor, and arrived in 1770, and three years after- 
wards a complete constitution was granted it, and the first Par- 
liament met at Charlottetown in 1773. The government con- 
sisted of a lieutenant-governor, aided by a combined executive 

^ Campbell's History of Priuce Edward Island. 



358 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

and legislative council, and a house of assembly of eighteen 
members. Of the executive council, three were members of 
the legislative council and one of the house of assembly. The 
first trouble in the new province arose from money difficulties. 
In asking for a constitution the proprietors had ofiered to make 
the quit-rents due in 1772 payable at once ; but they failed to 
pay up, and the governor was soon put to great straits to raise 
sufficient money to meet the civil list, which was very moderate, 
comprisingsalaryof the governor, live hundred pounds ; secretary 
and registrar, one hundred and fifty pounds ; chief-justice, two 
hundred pounds ; attorney-general, one hundred pounds ; clerk 
of the crown and coroner, eighty pounds ; provost marshal, 
fifty pounds; and the minister of the Church of England, one 
hundred pounds ; but even this small amount was not received 
from the quit-rents, and the governor was forced to use three 
thousand pounds, raised by the house for the erection of public 
buildings, to pay the employes of the government. 

5. The progress of the colony was very slow ; there was 
little or no emigration after the first excitement had worn ofi"; 
and in 1779, out of sixty-nine townships into which the island 
had been divided, efibrts towards settlement had only been 
made in about a dozen, and even in these the colonization was only 
partial. One reason for the lack of emigration was the bigotry 
of the Church of England, and the exclusion of Roman Cathohcs 
from settlement on the island. In 1775 Governor Patterson 
went to England ; and the proprietors presented a memorial to 
the colonial secretary praying that the civil establishment of 
the island should be provided for by an annual grant by Parlia- 
ment, as was done in other colonies. By a minute of council, 
passed on 7th August, 1776, it was ordered that legal proceed- 
ings should be taken to recover the arrears of quit-rents ; but 
no immediate action was taken by the governor, who was anx- 
ious to propitiate the proprietors. 

6. The island of St. John was made to feel the horrors of 
war shortly after the outbreak of the American Revolution. In 
November, 1775, two American vessels, cruising in the Gulf 
of the St. Lawrence for the purpose of trying to intercept 
English steamships on their way to Quebec, suddenly appeared 
in the harbor of Charlottetown, which was quite defenceless, 
and, landing a body of sailors and marines, pillaged the place 
of all that was valuable, and carried otf Hon. Mr. Callbeck, 
who was administering the government in the absence of 
Governor Patterson, and other officers, prisoners. General 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 359 

Washington then had his head-quarters at Cambridge, and as 
soon as he heard of the outrage he released the prisoners, re- 
stored the booty, and had the officers who commanded the 
expedition dismissed the service. The island sutlered no more 
during the war, except that the privateers hovering about the 
gulf sometimes replenished their scanty provisions at the ex- 
pense of the farmers' flocks and barn-yards ; but the loss was 
more than compensated by the occasional visits of British men- 
of-war, one of which, the " Hunter," being placed on the station, 
effectually protected the island. In 1778 four companies of 
militia, under Major Hierliky, were sent from New York to 
protect the island ; and in October, 1779, the ship " Camilla," 
with a regiment of Hessians on board, was forced, by stress of 
weather, to put into Charlottetown, and remain there until the 
following June. The town had not enough provisions to 
support them, but the deficiency was made up by the farmers. 
The visit was productive of good in the future, for many of the 
soldiers, pleased with the country, returned at the close of the 
war and settled there. 

7. In 1773 the Assembly had passed an act providing for 
the sale of allotments in the event of the quit-rents not being 
paid ; but the law had never been enforced. On his return 
from England, in 1780, however, Governor Patterson decided 
to enforce the law, and, accordingly, legal proceedings were 
taken and a number of estates sold for little more than the taxes 
due. This led to great complaints against Patterson, who 
bought large quantities of land himself, and ultimately led to 
his removal. The proprietors whose estates had been sold 
petitioned against the action of the governor, claiming that he 
had chosen an inopportune time, while the country was at war, 
and few English capitalists could be found to invest in colonial 
property, in an island which might be alienated from the British 
crown by the next treaty of peace ; that he had not followed 
due form of law, nor given sufficient notice in England of the 
intended sale ; and that he had used his power and positioji for 
his personal advantage, and acquired large tracts of the land for 
himself and his friends. This latter charge Patterson did not 
attempt to deny, for, in a letter to Mr. Stuart — the agent of the 
province in England — he says, "That the oflicers of the 
government have made purchases is certain, and that I have 
made some myself is also as certain ; but I should be glad to 
know who would be an officer of government if, by being such, 
he was deprived of his [yivilege as a citizen." He denied the 



360 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

first charge of illegal procedure, however, and tried hard to 
defend his action, which appears to be just and legal ; the pro- 
prietors Avould not comply with the conditions on which their 
grants had hcen made them, and either refused or neglected to 
pay the quit-rents which were absolutely necessary for the 
maintenance of the civil government. The law provided a 
remedy by the sale of the lands, and Governor Patterson merely 
applied the law, that was all, and he was quite right in doing 
so ; but his subsequent conduct >is not so easily justified. On 
the close of the war a great change took place in the value of 
land in the island, and those proprietors whose estates had 
been sold for taxes began to be clamorous to have the sale set 
aside, and the lands returned to them on payment of the 
arrears of taxes and expenses of sale. Patterson strongly 
opposed this, and puts the case very clearly in a letter to Mr. 
Stuart, dated the 12th of May, 1783 ; he says, "There is some 
idea, I find, of rescinding the purchases, and that government 
w'ill order it ; whoever has formed such an idea must have 
strange notions of government. Government may order me, 
and, if I have a mind to be laughed at, I may issue my orders 
to the purchasers ; but can any one believe that they will be 
obeyed ? Surely not ; nor would I be an inhabitant of any 
country where such a power existed. JNIy money may, with as 
much justice, be ordered out of my pocket, or the bread out of 
my mouth. A governor has just as much power to do the one as 
the other. I should like to know what opinion you would have 
of a country where the validity of public contracts depended on 
the will of the governor. The purchases were made in the very 
worst period of the war, when the property Avas very precarious 
indeed, and when no man in England w^ould have given hardly 
a guinea for the whole island. It is now at peace, and fortunately 
we still remain a part of the British empire. The lands are 
consequently esteemed more valuable, and the proprietors have 
become clamorous for their loss. Had the reverse taken place, 
— had the island been ceded to France,- — let me ask what 
would have been the consequence ? ^\Tiy, the purchasers would 
have lost their money, and the jDroprietors would have been 
quiet, hugging themselves on their own better judgment. 
There can be no restoring of the lots which were sold. There 
has not been a lot sold on ichich a single shilling has been ex- 
pended by way of settlement, nor upon which there has been a 
settler 2Jlc(ced ; so that those proprietors who have expended 
money in niaking settlements have no cause of complaint." 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 361 

8. The influence of proprietors at court was, however, too 
strong for the governor, and a resolution in council was passed 
on the 1st of May, 1784, voiding the sales made in 1781, and 
allowing the original proprietors to repossess themselves of 
their property on payment of the purchase money, interest, and 
charges incurred by the present proprietors, as well as the cost 
of any improvement which had been made. A bill based on this 
order in council was framed and sent out, in 1781, to Governor 
Patterson, to be submitted to the Assembly ; but he had no 
idea of giving up the property he had purchased so easily, and 
neglected to present the bill to the house, which he knew was 
unfriendly to him and Avould immediately pass the liill. Under 
the pretence that the home governliient was not fully acquainted 
with the facts regarding the land sale, the governor suppressed 
the bill sent out, only submitting it to the council, who were 
pledged to secrecy. His object was to get the Assembly to 
pass an act approving the sale of 1781, before he was forced by 
the home government to submit the rescinding act sent out ; 
and for this purpose he dissolved the house, which he knew 
was inimical to his interests, and ordered a new election ; but 
he was unfortunate in its result, for on the meeting of the new 
house one of its first acts was to consider the conduct of the 
governor with regard to the sales of land, and an address to the 
king, disapproving of his conduct, was being framed, when the 
governor hastily interfered and dissolved Parliament again. 
The governor was favored at this second election by the support 
of the newly arrived united empire loyalists, many of whom had 
settled on the island at the close of the Revolutionary War^ and 
whose wants had been assiduously attended to by the governor, 
in the hope of future political support; nor was he mistaken. 
In March, 1795, he ordered another general election, and the 
result was the return of a house entirely subservient to his 
wishes, although Mr. Stewart assures us that this " was not 
accomplished without a severe struggle, much illegal conduct, 
and at an expense to the governor and his friends of nearly two 
thousand pounds sterling." Nothing was said at the session of 
1785 about the sales of 1781, but at the next session a bill was 
introduced, and passed, entitled, " An act to render good and 
valid in law all and every of the proceedings in the years one 
thousand seven hundred and eighty, and one thousand seven 
hundred and eighty-one, which in every respect related to or 
concerned the suing, seizing, condemning, or selling of the lots 
or townships hereinafter mentioned, or any part thereof."' 



362 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

9. This legislation was disallowed by his majesty, and the 
proprietors in England urging on the colonial secretary that 
Governor Patterson did not intend to ohcy the orders of the 
home office, that officer superseded Patterson, and ordered 
him to return to England to answer to certain charges made 
against him, Colonel Fanning being instructed to tuke his place. 
The letter from tjie colonial secretary reached him in October, 
178G, and at the same time he was peremptorily ordered to 
submit to the Assembly the bill sent out in 1784, rescinding the 
sales of 1781, another copy of which was forwarded. Patterson 
now saw the folly of longer withholding the bill, and submitted 
it to the Assembly, when it was read for the first time on the 
1st of November ; but, in accordance with the desire of the gover- 
nor, the bill was shelved and a private bill passed in its place, 
which provided for the restoration of the escheated lands, but 
on such onerous terms that no advantage could be derived by 
the original proprietors by taking advantage of it. Of course 
the proprietors would not submit to this, and, on the matter 
being represented to the committee of the privy council, several 
members of the council were dismissed. Lieutenant-Governor 
Fanning arrived at Nova Scotia early in November, 1786, to 
assume the reins of government, but, to his surprise, found 
Patterson refused to give them up, pretending that the appoint- 
ment was made only to fill the vacancy to be caused by his 
(Patterson's) temporary absence in England ; and that, as it was 
then too late for him to proceed to England that year, there was 
no vacancy, and would be none until the spring. The claims 
of the rival governors caused considerable excitement on the 
island during the winter, as each had his partisans, but no breach 
of the peace occurred, and Patterson was allowed by Fanning 
to remain in almost undisputed possession of the government 
until the spring, when, early in April, the latter issued a procla- 
mation, embodying his appointment, and calling on all loyal 
citizens to recognize his title as lieutenant-governor of the 
island. Patterson at once issued a counter-proclamation, to the 
elTect that he was the only duly authorized representative of his 
majesty, and calling on all to pay no attention to the claims of 
the usurper. So matters remained at a dead-lock until the 
next month, when despatches from Lord Sj'dney settled the 
matter by curtly informing Patterson " his majesty has no 
farther occasion for your services as Lieutenant-Governor of 
St. John," and instructing Fanning to assume the government 
of the island. Patterson never returned to the island. Deserted 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 363 

by his friends in England he had no chance of reinstatement ; 
and, being in straitened circumstances, his large and valuable 
possessions on the island were sold at a mere nominal value 
under the hard laws which he had himself caused to be passed. 
" But the question occurs," says Mr. Campbell, " what became 
of the escheated lands which were ordered to be restored to the 
original proprietors ? After the proceeding already mentioned 
no determined eftbrt to regain the property was made by the 
original holders, with regard to whose claims to restitution no 
doubt could now exist. The Assembly did, indeed, pass an 
act in 1792, by which the old proprietors were permitted to 
take possession of their property ; l)ut eleven years having 
elapsed since the sales took place, and complications of an 
almost insuperable nature having in consequence ensued, the 
government deemed it inexpedient to disturb the present 
holders, more particularly as not a few of them had effected a 
compromise with the original grantees, which entitled them to 
permanent possession. Hence the act referred to was dis- 
allowed, and thus a subject which had for years agitated the 
community was permitted to remain in continued abeyance." 



CHAPTER XXXI. 

PEINCE EDWARD ISLAND, 1787 TO 1847. 

1. Colonel Fanning administered the affairs of the island 
for eighteen years, during which but little progress was made. 
The original proprietors still continued to hold their lands, and 
not pay the quit-rents. A census was taken in 17i)8, which 
showed a population of four thousand three hundred and seventy- 
two. There Avere seven hundred and forty-eight heads of 
families, and amongst these only twenty-five are returned as 
single men. Fifty families consisted of only two persons each, 
five of Avhich were widows, with one son each ; sixty-two families 
consisted of ten or more persons, the remaining six hundred 
and eleven families containing from three to nine persons each. 
The largest family on the island was that of Lieutenant-Gov- 
ernor Fanning, consisting of eighteen persons, eight of whom 
Were males and ten females. The names of these early settlers 
are a curious study, there being four hundred and eighty-seven 
different cognomens divided amongst the seven hundred and 



364 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

forty-eight families, Scotch names greatly preponderating; 
indeed one-third of the population were "Macs," for no less 
than two hundred and thirty-one families, consisting of seven 
hundred and one males and six hundred and thirty-six females, 
had the prefix " Ale " to their names, the McDonalds alone muster- 
ing sixfy-nine families, numbering two hundred and eight males 
and one hundred ninety-eight females ; nor do the McDonalds 
seem to have been all settled in one locality, but to have been 
pretty well spread over the island, as out of forty-niue districts 
from which returns are made the name McDonakl appears in 
twenty-one, and in only one instance — a widow and her daughter 
— does the family consist of less than three. English names 
are scarcer, and the Smith, Brown, Jones, and Robinson fam- 
ilies are very scantily represented ; the former having only three 
families, of nine males and ten females ; the Browns four fam- 
ilies, of eight males and eighteen females ; the Bobinsons two, 
families, of seven males and seven females ; while only one 
Jones — John Jones — is returned in the whole province, aud 
his family consisted of two males and three females. 

2. It was during the administration of Colonel Fanning that 
the name of the island was changed from St. John to Prince 
Edward. The inconvenience of the former name was felt at an 
early date, on account of there being the town and other places 
of the same name, and an effort was made in 1780 to change it 
to New Ireland, and a bill was introduced and passed in the 
House of Assembly adopting that name as the future one of the 
island ; but the action was taken without the knowledge or con- 
sent of the imperial government, and the bill was disallowed, 
after which no farther effort was made to change the name for 
nearly twenty years. During his residence at Halifax as com- 
mander-in-chief of the forces in North America, the Duke, of 
Kent ordered new barracks to be built at Charlottetown, and 
also had the harbor fortified ; and the inhabitants felt so grate- 
ful to him for his care and consideration of them, that, although 
he never visited the island, the house, at its session of 1798, 
passed an act changing the name of the island to Prince Edward, 
in compliment to him ; and the act having received the royal 
assent on the 1st of February, 1799, the province was thence- 
forward known as that of Prince Edward Island. The settling 
of the island went on very slowly under the proprietary system, 
and, in 1797, when the House of Assembly took the matter in 
hand, and made a careful examination into the state of the prov- 
ince, very little had been done. In this yeav the Assembly 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 365 

presented a petition to the king, praying that the proprietors 
should be compelled to fulfil the conditions on which the lands 
had been granted, or the lands themselves escheated to the 
crown and redistributed. This petition was based on a careful 
examination of the condition of the sixty-nine townships into 
which the island had been divided ; by which examination it 
was shown th:it in twenty-three townships, which were named, 
and which contained over four hundred and fifty thousand acres, 
there was not a single resident settler ; that in twelve other 
townships there w^ere only thirty-six families, numbering about 
two hundred persons, who thus constituted the entire population 
of nearly one-half the area of the whole island. The opinion 
of the house was that these lands were only held on speculation, 
that the proprietors were taking advantage of the leniency of 
the government, and that the lands should be given to actual 
settlers. The petition was favorably received by the Duke of 
Portland, then colonial secretary, and Governor Fanning in- 
structed that the evils complained of should be removed. In 
opening the session of 1802 Governor Fanning stated that the 
imperial government had favorably considered the petition, and 
advised the house to be ready to adopt, when necessarv, the 
legal means to reinvest his majesty with the lands which could 
be escheated. The house inquired for farther information, and, 
not receiving it, passed "An act for etiectually reinvesting in 
his majesty, his heirs and successors, all such lands as are, or 
may be, liable to forfeiture within this island," which, greatly 
to the astonishment of the house, was disallowed by the home 
government. 

3. The cause of this disallowance is not hard to find. It 
must be remembered that in the time of which we are Avritinsf 
the provinces were all really governed by orders from the 
colonial office, and the party most powerful in Downing street 
controlled the aflairs of the provinces, no matter what the local 
government might desire ; now, the proprietary party was still 
very strong with the home office, and, of course, used its influ- 
ence against a redistribution of the land, for both the resident 
and non-resident proprietors were opposed to any change. The 
non-resident proprietors only held their lands on speculation ; 
it had cost them nothing, and they did not intend that it should, 
for they paid no quit-rent, made no improvement, promoted no 
immigration, and were only waiting until their island was suffi- 
ciently settled by others to make their land valuable, Avhen they 
proposed turning it into money, and closing their connection 



366 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

Avith the islaod. Those proprietors who had improved their 
property were also opposed to any change ; for they argued — 
with considerable judgment — that if the lands now unoccupied 
were escheated to the crown and redistributed, a number of the 
settlers, who were now their tenants, would desire to -become 
proprietors, and so leave their lands unoccupied. Both parties, 
therefore, brought their influence to bear on the home office, 
and the result was the disallowance of the bill. The Assembly 
was justly incensed at such disregard for the best interests of 
the island, and drew up a strong remonstrance, which was sent 
to the agents of the colony in London for presentation : ad- 
dresses were also forwarded, through Governor Fanning, to the 
colonial secretary and the president of the committee of the 
privy council for trade and plantations ; but the influence of 
the proprietors was so great that not only was no attention paid 
to the complaints of the Assembly by Lord Castlereagh, then 
colonial secretary, but a composition was also made with regard 
to the overdue quit-rents, which now amounted to about sixty 
thousand pounds sterling, the amount due on some townships 
being more than it was calculated they would sell for. The 
commutation was divided into four classes, and, the agreement 
was, that the payment of quit-rents for a certain number of years 
should be taken in lieu of the thirty-two years now due. Those 
proprietors who had on their lands the required number of set- 
tlers, as agreed for under the original grant, were released from 
all the past quit-rents by paying for five years, and a propor- 
tionate deduction was made for the other classes, who had made 
l^artial settlements, and who had made none. 

4. This commutation had a good effect, for, although a large 
number of the proprietors still refused to pay even the small 
amount demanded, still a great many thought this a good time 
to sell and realize what they could on the land, and for the next 
four years a brisk business was done in sales, about one-third 
of the Avhole island changing proprietors in that time, many of 
the purchasers being determined to actually colonize and 
develop the resources of the country. Foremost amongst 
these new proprietors was the Earl of Selkirk, who had large 
possessions on the north and south of Point Prim. This had 
been the site of an old French settlement, which had been 
abandoned on the cession of the island to Great Britain, and 
had become partially grown over with young timber. In 1803 
the earl beo^an to remove a number of Highlanders to his island 
property, about eight hundred coming that year, and the num- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 367 

ber being increased from time to time until about four thousand 
in all settled on the fertile soil, which, under this good manage- 
ment, soon began to yield plentiful harvests. The same Earl of 
Selkirk afterwards formed a settlement at the E-ed river, of 
which we shall speak more fully in our comments on the North- 
west Territory. Colonel Fanning resigned the lieutenant- 
governorship in 1804, and was succeeded by Desbarres, who 
arrived in July, 1805. Colonel Desbarres was an old man, 
who had been the first governor of Cape Breton when it was 
made a separate colony, in 1784, and his administration was not 
marked by any remarkable events, beyond the growing dissatis- 
faction of the Assembly at the conduct of the home government, 
in again disallowing the act passed for the escheating of lauds 
which the proprietors had neglected to settle and improve as 
required of them by the original grant. War with the United 
States was declared during his administration, but the tide of 
conflict did not turn towards the island. 

5. Colonel Desbarres was succeeded, in 1813, by Mr. 
Charles Douglas Smith, a brother of Sir S^'dney Smith, who 
soon changed the character of the government of the island by 
turning it into a despotism, of which he was the autocrat, and 
very nearly drove the islanders into open rebellion by his illegal 
and tyrannical conduct. The Assembly met in November, 
1813, and was rather cavalierly treated by the governor, who 
seemed to think such a legislative body unnecessary, and, after 
prorogation in January, 1814, did not summon the house to 
meet again until 1817, when the house, proceeding to inquire into 
the state of the province, was promptly dissolved by the dic- 
tatorial governor, who ordered a general election in 1818. The 
new house also endeavored to inquire into the state of the prov- 
ince, and was at once dissolved, another being elected in 1820, 
but was not called together ; and so, with the exception of the 
session of 1813, the island was virtually left without a Parlia- 
ment, and in the absolute power of one tyrant for eleven years. 
The governor's tyranny commenced on the vexed subject of 
quit-rents, — " the root of all evil," we might almost say, at that 
time in the island. A proclamation Avas issued in Octo1)er, 
1816, setting forth that the king had resolved to make certain 
concessions to the proprietors, to remit a portion of the quit- 
rents, and to fix a reduced scale for them in future. Nothing 
more was done in the matter until January, 1818, when the 
governor suddenly ordered the acting receiver-general to collect 
at once all arrears of quit-rents from June, 1816, to December, 



368 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

1818, at the old rates. The summary proceedings in collecting 
these taxes caused great distress and inconvenience to the peo- 
ple ; and, on the case being properly represented to the home 
government, the action of the governor Avas disapproved, jarther 
proceedings stopped, and a refund ordered of all collected in 
excess of the rate of two shillings for every hundred acres ; it 
was also announced that in future the collection of quit-rents 
would be peremptorily insisted on, but over three years passed 
away and no action was taken ; and the general impression was 
that the government would not enforce the tax again, especially 
as it had been abandoned in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. 
In June, 1822, a notice was posted up in the office of the 
receiver-general, Charlottetown, that the office Avould be open 
from ten to four during the iirst fifteen days of July to receive 
quit-rents ; but no attention was paid to it by the ihw wdio saw 
it, and the great bulk of the people never saw or heard anything 
at all about it. Nothing farther was done until December, when 
another notice was put up that quit-rents must bo paid by the 
14th of Januarj", 1823 ; but no steps were taken to inform the 
people that proceedings would be instituted against them if the 
tax was not paid ; and, indeed, not one person in a hundred 
knew that any demand had been nuide. Immediately on the 
expiration of the time given in the notice, summary proceedings 
were taken to force payment. Seizure w\as made of the prop- 
erty of two of the leading settlers, in townships thirty-six 
and thirty-seven ; and shortly after a regular descent was made 
on the eastern district of King's County, wdiich was thickly set- 
tled, principally by Highlanders, who did not understand a word 
of English, and great distress was caused. The tax-gatherers 
demanded immediate payment, or a note at ten days, in default 
of which an auction sale of all goods and chattels was threatened. 
The poor Highlanders did not know what to do, but mostly 
gave their notes, and then hurried up to Charlottetown to sell 
their winter stock of produce to pay the notes, in some instances 
being actually driven up like sheep by the tax-gatherer. This 
long journey of lifty or sixty miles in the depth of Svinter caused 
great distress ; and the sudden influx of so much produce into 
Charlottetown depressed prices a great deal, so that many of 
the farmers were almost ruined by the sacrifice of their crops to 
pay their notes. 

6. Public indignation was now thoroughly aroused against 
the governor, and the people determined to hold public meet- 
ings for the purpose of preparing a petition to the king, praying 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 369 

for his removal, they ])cing' unable to do so through their rep- 
resentatives, as the governor would not call a meeting of Par- 
liament. Forty leading settlers signed a formal requisition to 
the sheriff', Mr. John ]\IcGregor, calling on him to convene a 
public meeting in each of the three counties into which the 
island was divided, in order that the people might consult to- 
gether on the state of the province, they having been deprived 
of a Parliament for three years. The sheriff* could not refuse 
this very just and constitutional demand, and appointed the tirst 
meeting to l)c held at Charlottetown, on the 6th of March, and 
subsequent meetings at St. Peter's and Princetown, — a course of 
action highly displeasing to the despotic governor, who thought 
the people had no right to complain about him, and he dis- 
missed the sheriff and appointed a Mr. Townshend in his place. 
The charges against the governor, as- formulated in the petition 
to the king, adopted at the three public meetings held, were 
numerous and serious. He was charged with utter ignorance 
of the wants, condition, or requirements of the country, inas- 
much as, although he had been ten years on the island, he had 
never quitted Charlottetown but once, and then only for a drive 
of eighteen miles in the country ; with illegally constituting a 
couit of escheat in 1818 ; with insulting the Assembly hy re- 
fusing to meet it, and by summarily dismissing it under partic- 
ularly aggravating circumstances ; with screening the chief- 
iustice of the island from thirteen serious chars-es made as-ainst 
him; of nepotism, by appointing his son-in-law. Lieutenant 
Ijane, to the council, — a position to which he had no right or 
title ; and of having, as chancellor of the escheat court, per- 
mitted his son-in-law. Lane, whom he had appointed registrar 
and master, to make very heavy additions to the fees. This 
latter charge was made a pretext by the goA'ernor for a charge- 
of gross libel and contempt of the Court of Chancery by the 
members of the Queens County committee, Avho drew up the 
petition to the king, and warrants were issued for the arrest of 
the members ; the main object of the governor, however, being 
the arrest of Mr. Stewart, who had been appbinted to present 
the petitions in England, and who had them in his possession. 
Li this the governor was foiled by the prompt escape of Mr. 
Stewart to Nova Scotia, and he revenged himself on the other 
members of the committee by imposing heavy fines on them. 
Had Mr. Stewart been arrested, and the petitions seized and 
destroyed, as the governor intended, the result would, prob- 
ably, have been a revolution on the island ; for the people were 



370 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

terribly excited, and had been provoked almost past endurance 
by Smith's arbitrary conduct. 

7. The first newspaper published in Prince Edward Island 
was the " Prince Edward Island Register," which was printed 
by Mr. James D. Haszard, and made its appearance on the 2()th 
of July, 1823. Mr. Haszard published the particulars given 
above, and for so doing w'as summoned before the Court of 
Chancery, charged with libelling the court and its ofiiccrs, but 
was let off with a reprimand on his giving the names of the 
parties from whom he received his information : Messrs. Stew- 
art, McGregor, Mahey, Dockendorif, Owen, and McDonald. 
The governor made quite a pompous speech to Mr. Haszard, 
saying, ''I compassionate your youth and inexperience; did I 
not do so, I would lay you by the heels long enough for you to 
remember it. You have delivered your evidence fairly, plainly, 
clearly, and as became a man; but I caution you, when you 
publish anything again, keep clear, sir, of a chancellor ! Be- 
ware, sir, of a chancellor ! " This solemn warning was not very 
long effective, however, for Mr. Stewart was exceedingly well 
received in England, the petition taken into immediate consid- 
eration, and Smith was recalled, he being succeeded by Colonel 
Ready, who arrived on the 21st of October, 1824, accompanied 
by Mr. Stewart, and was most enthusiastically received by the 
inhabitants, who w^ere heartily sick and tired of Smith and his 
tyranny, and welcomed any change as a relief, feeling quite 
confident it could not be for the worse. Charlottetown was 
brilliantly illuminated on the evening of the governor's arrival, 
and an address was presented to him, part of which read : "We 
feel the utmost confidence that the harmony that ought always 
to exist between the government and the people is perfectly 
established, and that your excellency will believe that loyalty, 
obedience to the laws, and a love of order, is the character of 
the inhabitants of Charlottetown. AYe cannot omit on this 
occasion to express our unfeigned gratitude and thanks for the 
attention which his majesty has been graciously pleased to pay 
to the interests of this colony, in confiding its government to 
3''our excellenc3''s hands, and to add our most fervent wishes 
that your administration of it may be long and happy."' In 
justice to the islanders, it must be said that, although, they were 
loud and demonstrative in their joy at the appointment of the 
new governor, entertained him at a public dinner, and made 
most flattering speeches, they offered no insult to Smith ; and 
when he left for England be was even presented with a fare- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 371 

well address by a few office-holders Avhom he had favored during 
his administration. 

8. No Parliament had met since 1820, and one of Ready's 
first acts was to order a general election, which took place late 
in the fall, and the new house met in January, 1825, Avhen Mr. 
John Stewart was elected speaker. The Legislature quickly 
busied itself with passing several important bills, Mdiicli were 
greatly needed. An act to improve the educational department 
was passed ; also others regulating the fisheries, juries, juris- 
diction of justices of peace, and one authorizing the governor 
to appoint commissioners to issue five thousand pounds ster- 
ling of treasury-notes, and to increase the revenue by taxation. 
The business of the house was promptly and amicably trans- 
acted, and the same despatch and harmony characterized a 
second session in October. At this latter session a petition 
was presented from the Roman Catholics, praying for the re- 
moval of their political disabilities : but, l)eing received late in 
the session, it was not then considered. After the close of the 
session Governor Ready visited P^ngland on private business, 
and the Hon. George Wright acted as administrator during his 
absence. This year the mode of paying the custom-house 
officials was changed, as it was in the other provinces, and in- 
stead of collecting fees they were given fixed salaries. The island 
was now in a cpiiet, happy, and prosperous state. The popu- 
lation had increased to about twenty-three thousand. Agricul- 
ture was flourishing, and trade and commerce steadily growing. 
During the year eighteen vessels arrived from Great Britain, 
and one hundred and twenty-eight from British colonies. The 
imports were valued at cighty-iive thousand three hundred and 
thirty-seven pounds, and the exports at ninety-live thousand 
four hundred and twenty-six pounds. The islanders seem to 
have been far from total abstainers, for amongst the imports we 
find four thousand gallons of rum, two thousand five hundred 
gallons of brandy, and three thousand gallons of gin, Avhicli 
would give an average of over two and a half gallons of spirits 
to every man, woman, and child on the island. 

9. The governor, on his return from England, met Parlia- 
ment in March, 1837, and congratulated the province on the 
great internal improvements which had taken place, a road 
having been completed to Princetown, and lines surveyed for 
extending it to Cascumpec and Xorth Cape. He also advocated 
the formation of an agricultural societ}^ — a matter which was 
then attracting a good deal of attention in the oth^r provinces. 



372 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

The most important bills passed were one providing for taking 
a census of the island, and another authorizing the formation of 
a fire company in Charlottetown. The petition of the lloman 
Catholics for the removal of their political disabilities came up 
this session, and, after considerable discussion, the resolution 
to remove these disabilities was lost on the casting vote of the 
speaker, Mr. Stewart, who gave as his reason not any objection 
to granting the Roman Catholics the same right to vote as the 
Protestants, l)ut that, as the question had not been decided in 
England, he did not feel authorized to admit the principle in 
the province. During this session (1827) the council and 
Assembly got at variance about appropriations, and at the fol- 
lowing session the council rejected the appropriation bill, which 
caused great inconvenience to the governor, who, on opening 
the session of 1829, recommended a conciliatory policy on both 
sides, and so far succeeded in making peace that lousiness com- 
munications were resumed between the two houses, and the 
supply-bill passed. At this session a ])ill was passed providing 
for the establishment of a non-sectarian college at Charlotte- 
town. The session of 1830 was marked l)y the passage of an 
act removing all political disabilities from Roman Catholics, and 
all places of trust, honor, or proht open to other denominations 
were henceforward open to members of that faith. The years 
1829-31 saw quite a stream of immigration turn towards the 
colony, nearly two thousand fresh arrivals taking place in that 
time, and a great impetus being given to agriculture, which 
was now also being benefited by the operations of the agricul- 
tural society, and the establishment of branches of it in dif- 
ferent parts of the island. Colonel Ready was recalled in 1831, 
and his departure was greatly regretted by the people. He 
had come to them when they were writhing under most op- 
pressive tyranny, and by his wise, moderate, and enlightened 
government he had done much to improve the island, and win 
the love of the inhal^itants, during his seven years of office. 

10. Colonel Ready was succeeded hy Colonel A. W. Young, 
who arrived in September, 1831, and met Parliament in Janu- 
ary, 1832. Several useful acts were passed at this session, 
amongst them one granting a subsidy of three hundred pounds 
a yeai- for a bi-weekly mail service between Charlottetown and 
Pietou, N. S., a contract being made with the steamer "Pocahon- 
tas." An act was also passed changing the term of the Assembly 
from seven to four years. A census was taken in 1833, which 
showed the population to be thirty-two thousand, — an increase 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 373 

of forty per cent, on the return of 1827. Colonel Young vis- 
ited England in the summer of 1834, when he was knighted. 
Towards the close of 1834 a general election was held, and Par- 
liament met in January, 1835, when the council and Assembly 
immediately got at variance on the appropriation bill, and no 
supplies were passed. Shortly after prorogation, however, the 
governor got both parties to agree to pass the revenue and ap- 
propriation bills separately, and an extra session was called in 
April, at which the supply bills were passed. The governor 
opened the extra session, but Avas too ill to close it, and his mal- 
ady grew worse until the 1st of December, 1835, when he died, 
in the fifty-eighth year of his age, forty-oue of which had been 
devoted to the service of his country in various parts of the 
world ; and wherever he Avas he distinguished himself by cour- 
age, prudence, and urbanity, gaining for himself friends and ad- 
mirers in all the countries in which he served. 

11. The Hon. George A\^ right was sworn in as adminis- 
trator on the death of Sir Aretus W. Young, and conducted 
the affairs of the province until the arrival of Colonel Sir John 
Harvey, in February, 1836. Sir John only remained in office 
one year, when he Avas transferred to New Brunswick, and suc- 
ceeded by Sir Charles Augustus Fitzroy, who arrived in June, 
1837. He Avas not long in finding out AAdiat was the real cause 
of the farmers' troubles, the proprietorship of nearly the Avhole 
island by absentees, Avho drained the actual settler of his last 
farthing, as soon as his farm began to be remunerative, or 
ejected him if he failed to pay. The governor issued a circu- 
hir to the proprietors, advising them to sell the land to the ten- 
ants nnder some system of payment l)y instalment, or alloAv 
something to them for improA^ements. The House of Asseml)ly 
passed a laAv providing for an assessment on all lands in the 
province, Avhich the proprietors opposed. A report Avas pre- 
pared by jSIessrs. T. H. Haviland, R. Hodgson, and other 
members of the Assembly, Avhich showed that the local expen- 
diture of the government for the last twelve years had been 
one hundred and seven thousand six hundred and forty-three 
pounds, of Avhich twenty-eight thousand five hundred and six 
pounds had been expended on roads and bridges, to the great 
advantage of the property of the proprietors ; thirteen thousand 
fiA^e hundred and fifty-six pounds on pul)lic buildings and 
wharves ; and sixt^^-six thousand five hundred and sixty-two 
pounds for other local purposes. And of these large sums, the 
whole amount contributed by the proprietors of the soil had 



374 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

been only seven thousand four hundred and thirteen pounds, 
leaving the balance of one hundred thousand pounds to be 
borne by the resident consumers of dutiable articles. Lord 
Durham wrote a long letter favoring the true interests of the 
island ; and at last the enactment received the royal sanction, 
notwithstanding the importunity of the circle who tried to reg- 
ulate the land question in London. This showed that, at last, 
the influence of the proprietors in the colonial otticc was being 
broken, and was an augury of good for the island. A mechan- 
ic's institute was established in L harlottetown, in 1838, mainly 
at the instance of the Hon. Charles Young, and a course of lec- 
tures inaugurated which were kept up for several years. Parlia- 
ment met again early in 1839, but almost immediately after its 
assembly the governor received a despatch from the colonial sec- 
retary, requiring him to remodel the council, and he at once pro- 
rogued the house. The change was the division of the council, 
which had hitherto been both executive and elective, into two ; 
an executive council of nine members, and a legislative council 
of twelve, exclusive of the chief justice, who retired from it. 
The house met again in March, and Mr. AV. Cooper, speaker 
of the house, was sent to London as a delegate on the land 
question. Three propositions were submitted by the Assem- 
bly : the establishment of a court of escheat ; the resumption 
by the crow^n of the rights of the proprietors ; and a heavy pe- 
nal tax on wilderness lands ; but Lord John Russell, the colo- 
nial secretary, declined to entertain either proposition at the 
moment ; but recommended, instead, the adoption as a basis of 
settlement of terms proposed by the proprietors through their 
agent Mr. Young. Sir Charles Fitzroy, having been appointed 
to a governorship in the West Indies, was succeeded by Sir 
Henry Yere Huntley, who arrived in November, 184:L 

12. Sir Henry Yere Huntley filled his term of office (six 
years) without any very eventful occurrences taking place. 
The Hon. George Wright, senior member of council, died 
in March, 1842. He had been nearly thirty years a member 
of that body, and had lilled the office of administrator live 
times, during absences of the different governors. A serious 
disturl)ance occurred in King's County, in March, 1843, caused 
l)y the legal ejectment of a farmer named Hancy, whose friends 
forcibly reinstated him after burning the proprietor's house. 
The corner-stone of the new colonial building was laid by the 
lieutenant-governor on IGth May, 1843, with appropriate cere- 
monies, and the building was occupied by the Legislature for 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 375 

the first time at the opening of the session in January, 1847. 
Some feeling against the governor was caused by his Avithdraw- 
ing his name as patron of the Agricultural Society, because the 
Assembly refused to enlarge and improve Government House 
for him in the manner he wished. The society very properly 
accepted the resignation Avithout any other comment than that 
it could not see what the Legislature's refusing to repair Gov- 
ernment House had to do with the patronage of the Agricultu- 
ral Society ; and then requested II.R.H. Prince Albert to be- 
come its patron, — a request which Avas immediately complied 
with. A sharp controversy arose in 1846 between the gov- 
ernor and Mr. Joseph Pope, who was speaker of the house and 
a member of the executive council. A proposal was made to in- 
crease the salary of the governor five hundred pounds per an- 
num, Avhich Mr. Pope opposed on the ground of economy ; this 
annoyed the governor, and he dismissed Mr. Pope from the exec- 
utive council on his own responsibility, and without consulting 
the council, which would most undoubtedly have supported Mr. 
Pope. Mr. Gladstone, who Avas then colonial secretary, informed 
the governor that he had exceeded his powers, and that he must 
reinstate Mr. Pope until he had consulted the council. Mr. 
Pope, however, saved him the trouble l)y resigning, after a cor- 
respondence in Avhich he most decidedly had the best of it, and 
he repaid the governor his ill-Avill in the folloAving year, at the 
expiration of his term of oflSce, by getting up a petition against 
his reappointment for another term, Avhich AA^as favorably re- 
ceived by the colonial secretary, and the governor was suc- 
ceeded by Sir Donald Campbell. A very serious election riot 
occurred betAveen the Scotch and Irish factions in the district 
of Belfast, in February, 1847, in which four persons Avere 
killed, and between eighty and a hundred Avounded, some seri- 
ously. The currency of the island had for some years been in 
a very unsatisfactory state, and in 1847 a committee of the 
house reported in favor of legislation giA'ing the paper money 
issued by the government a fixed value in English gold or sil- 
ver, and also advocated the establishment of a bank, where 
treasury notes could be exchanged for gold. During this ses- 
sion the house had the subject of responsible government un- 
der consideration, and passed a scries of resolutions favoring 
its establishment, Avhich Avere embodied in an address to the 
queen, and sent to the home ofiice. 



376 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



CHAPTER XXXII. 

PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND, 1847 TO 1875. 

1. ^SiR H. V. Huntley's term of office having nearly ex- 
pired, some of his friends, at his instance, got up a petition 
that he should be reappointed for another six years ; but Mr. 
Pope — as we have ah-eady stated — got up a counter-petition, 
which was successful, and Sir II. V. Huntley was recalled, his 
successor, Sir Donald Campl)ell, arriving at Charlottetown in 
December, 1847, where he was received with more than the usual 
welcome, on account of his bemg a member of an ancient High- 
land family, — a large proportion of the settlers on the island be- 
in"; Hi<2:hlanders and their descendants. In 1848 another census 
was taken, which showed that the population of the province 
had increased to sixty-two thousand six hundred and thirty-four. 
At the session of 1849 the Asseml)ly passed an act fixing the 
elections for the same day throughout the island, it having been 
found that the system of having different days in dilferent 
counties gave too great a scope to the rowdy element, and 
caused many riots. During this session a reply Avas received 
from Earl Grey, colonial secretaiy, to the petition of the house 
in 1847, for the establishment of responsible government, in 
which he declined to accede to their prayer on the ground that 
the island had not sufficient population, and that the existing 
form of government afforded all the safeguards necessary for 
the peace and prosperity of the colon}' ; he, however, thought 
that the time had come when the revenues of the island might 
be given up to the Assembly, provided it would grant a suffi- 
cient civil list, with the exception of the lieutenant-governor's 
salary, which the home government oftercd to pay, and which 
was increased to live thousand pounds a year. The Assembly, 
in reply, accepted the offer, provided the revenues from per- 
manent laws Avere granted in perpetuity, all claims for quit- 
rents abandoned, and responsible government conceded. The 
colonial secretary Avas Avilling to grant all asked, except respon- 
sible government; and, in order to test the real feeling of the 
province on this point, Parliament was dissolved and a general 
election held. The new house met on the 5th of JNIarch, 1850, 
and Avas even more strongly in favor of responsible govern- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



raent, and in the address to the speech from the throne ex- 
pressed 11 want of confidence in the executive council, Avhich 
was also supplemented I)}' a resolution that the house v.'ould 
grant no supplies until the council was remodelled ; or, in 
other words, until the right of the Asseml)ly to change the 
executive, when it no longer had the confidence of the majority 
of the house, had been conceded. The governor tried to tem- 
porize, and offered to give three seats in the council to members 
of the lower house ; but this would not do, — the house Avas fight- 
ing for a principle, and it meant to attain its ends l)y constitu- 
tional means. The proposition of the governor was therefore 
rejected, and another petition to the queen forwarded, praying 
for responsible government. The house was prorogued on the 
2()th of March, but, as no supplies had been voted, the governor 
summoned the members again on the 2r)thof Apnl, in the hope 
that a month's vacation would have put them in a better humor. 
But he was mistaken ; the house still held to the ground it had 
taken, and, although it granted a few necessary supplies, passed 
uo bills providing for roads, bridges, etc., and refused to dis- 
cuss any business until the C[uestion of responsible government 
was settled, so that the governor was forced to dismiss the 
house, which he did Avitli a reprimand. 

2. Sir Donald Campbell forAvarded a very able despatch to 
the colonial secretary on the condition, resources, and prospects 
of the island, Avhich, added to the petitions of the Assembl}', 
decided the colonial secretary to grant responsible government ; 
but Sir Donald did not live to see it carried into execution, as 
he died in October, 1850, before the determination of the colo- 
nial secretary had been made know^n. The Hon. Ambrose 
Lane acted as administrator until the arrival of Sir Alexander 
Bannerman, Avho crossed the strait of Northumberland in an ice- 
boat, and arrived at Charlottetown on the 8th of March, 1851. 
The Legislature was convened on the 25th of JMarch, and the 
governor communicated the welcome intelligence that the home 
government had yielded to the representations of the xlssernbly, 
and consented to grant responsible government on condition 
that provision should be made for pensioning retiring oflicers. 
This the house willingly consented to, and the government was 
speedily reconstructed, Avith Hon. George Coles as president 
of the council ; Mr. Charles Young, attorney-general ; Hon. 
Joseph Pope, treasurer, and Hon. James Warburton, colonial 
secretary. The house passed acts commuting the croAvn re\'- 
enues, provided for the civil list and for inland posts, })y Avhicli 



378 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

inland postage was reduced to twopence to all parts of the 
island, and a uniform rate of threepence to any part of British 
North America adopted. The only other occurrence of any 
moment in 1851 was a violent storm sweeping over the island 
on the 3d and 4th of October, by which seventy-two fishing- 
vessels were either driven ashore or seriously injured, and con- 
siderable damage was done to property on the island. 

3. The most important business of the session of 1852 was 
with regard to education, and we will take the opportunity of 
summing up here what previous etlbrts had been made in this 
direction. It will be remembered that at the original distribu- 
tion of land, in 17G7, thirty acres were reserved in each town- 
ship for a school-master ; but nothing was clone in the way of 
education until 1821, when a national school was opened in 
Charl(.)ttetown, and soon afterAvards a 1)oard of education was 
appointed for the island, and other schools opened, while in 
l8oG a central academy was established in Charlottetown. In 
the following year, 1837, the office of superintendent of schools 
was established, Mr. John McNeil being the first incumbent. 
Education seems to have been at a low ebb, to judge from the 
superintendent's first report, as for a population of about 
thirty-five thousand there Avere only fifty-one schools, with a 
total attendance of fifteen hundred and thirty-three. In many 
of the districts the people Avere so poor that they could not 
afford to send their children to school, and, besides, AA^anted 
what little assistance they could give on the farm. On account 
of the small salary giA^en, and the precarious manner of receiv- 
ing it, good school-masters Avere scarce, and some of rather 
doubtful character and of A^ery limited attainments had been 
appointed for lack of better. In his report Mr. McNeil says, 
"1 must also mention another practice, AAhich is too prevalent in 
the country, and AA'hich I conceiA^e is exceedingly injurious to 
the respectability of the teacher in the eyes of his pupils, and, 
consequently, hurtful to his usefulness ; that is, receiving his 
board by going about from house to house, in which case he is 
regarded, both by parents and children, as little better than a 
common menial." During the next- five years there AA^as con- 
siderable improvement, especially in the attendance, and, by 
Mr. McNeil's report for 1842, Ave find that the number of 
schools had increased to one hundred and tAventy-one, and the 
number of scholars to four thousand three hundred and fifty- 
six. In 1848 the office of general superintendent Avas abolished, 
and a superintendent for each county appointed. On opening 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 379 

the Session of 1852 the lieutenant-governor — referring to his 
trip to various parts of the island during the summer — ex- 
pressed his regret at the want of sutScient educational facilities ; 
and a free-school act was passed, which provided for raising a 
school-fund by additional taxation on land. This was the basis 
of the present system of the island, and gave a great impetus 
to education. In the following year the olHcc of general super- 
intendent for the whole island was reestablished. Other edu- 
cational changes w^e shall notice in their proper order in the 
course of events. 

4. During the session of 1853 an act establishing universal 
suflrage was passed, and its effect was shortly afterwards felt, 
at the general election next year, at wliich the government 
party was defeated. Considerable agitation took place about 
this time among the teraperance organizations, with reference to 
obtaining legislation to prohibit the manufacture, importation, 
or sale of intoxicating liquors on the island ; but nothing came 
of it. A very sad accident took place on the 7th of October, 
1853, by which seven persons lost their lives. The steamer 
"Fairy Queen," from Charlottetown to Pictou, became disabled 
in a heavy sea near Pictou Island, and was speedily broken up. 
The captain and most of the crew seized the only boat, and 
pulled away, leaving the unfortunate passengers to their fate. 
Fortunately the upper deck separated from the vessel and 
seiwed as a raft, by which all the passengers, save seven, — 
three men and^ four women, — reached Mesigomish Island. 
Nothing of importance was done at the session of 1854, except 
that a vote of want of confidence in the government was passed, 
which led to a dissolution and the defeat of the government, as al- 
ready mentioned. The governor, in opening the house, referred 
in congratulatory terms to the flourishing condition of the prov- 
ince, which Avas almost free from debt, which at the beginning 
of 1850 had amounted to twenty-eight thousand pounds. In 
four years this had been reduced to three thousand pounds, and 
would have been extinguished altogether but for an expenditure 
of about three thousand pounds for educational purposes. In 
these four years the revenue had risen from twenty-two thou- 
sand pounds to thirty-five thousand pounds, although the duty 
on tea had been reduced. Sir Alexander Bannerman, having 
been appointed governor of the Bahamas, was succeeded, on 
the 12th of June, 1854, by Sir Dominick Daly, who had for- 
merly been secretary of the province of Canada. 

5. Parliament met in September, 1854, when au act was 



380 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

passed giving effect to the Iveeiprocity Treaty lately entered 
into between Great Britain and the United states, by which 
grain, breadstuffs, and provisions Averc imported into the island 
duty free. The same year saw the departnre of the imperial 
forces, on account of the outbreak of the Crimean A^'ar ; and an 
attempt to make a partial settlement of the land question, by 
purchasing some of the large estates from the original pro- 
prietors ; the Worrell estate, consisting of eighty-one thousand 
three hundred acres, being so purchased this year for twenty- 
four thousand one hundred pounds sterling. At the session of 
1855 the city of Charlottetown was incorporated, and a long- 
felt want on the island was supplied l)y the establishment of 
the Bank of Prince Edward Island. The governor, in proro- 
guing the house, deprecated the attempts at escheat which were 
from time to time made, and advocated a continuance of the 
policy of purchase by the government from the proprietors. 
He also returned the thanks of her majesty for the vote of 
two thousand pounds passed by the Assembly as a contribution 
towards the fund for the relief of the widows and orphans of 
those who fell in the Crimea. A bill was also passed at this 
session establishing a normal school, which was opened the 
following year. The number of schools had now increased to 
two hundred and sixty-eight, with an attendance of eleven 
thousand, (nit of a population of seventy-one thousand, as shown 
by the census returns of 1855. Two acts were passed at this 
session with reference to the tenure of land, one imposing a 
duty on the rent-rolls of proprietors in certain townships, and 
another to secure compensation to tenants. 

G. At the opening of the session of 185G the governor in- 
formed the house that both these acts had been disallowed by 
the home government, — a decision with which the house was 
none too well pleased, and it did not hesitate to state that the 
absentee proprietors had too much influence at the colonial 
office at home. Mr. Lal)ouchere, the colonial secretary, in in- 
Itimating the decision of the government in reference to the land 
acts of the last session, stated that whatever character might 
properly attach to the circumstances connected Avith the original 
grants, wliich had been often employed against the maintenance 
of the rights of the proprietors, they could not, with justice, 
be used to defeat the rights of the present owners, who had 
acquired their property by inheritance, by family settlement, 
or otherwise. Seeing, therefore, that the rights of the pro- 
prietors could not be sacrificed without manifest injustice, he 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 381 

felt it his duty steadily to resist, by all means in his power, 
measures similar in their character to those recently brought 
under the consideration of her majesty's government. He de- 
sired, at the same time, to assure the House of Assembly that 
it was with much regret that her majesty's advisers felt them- 
selves constrained to oppose the wishes of the people of Prince 
Edward Island, and that it was his own wish to lie spared the 
necessity of authoritative interference in regard to matters af- 
fecting the internal administration of their affairs. With regard 
to the main object which had been frequently proposed l)y a 
large portion of the inhal)itants, namely, that some means might 
1)6 provided by which a tenant holding under a lease could ar- 
rive at the position of a fee-simple proprietor, he was anxious 
to facilitate such a change, provided it could be effected without 
injustice to the proprietors. Two ways suggested themselves : 
first, the usual and natural one of purchase and sale between 
the tenant and the owner ; and, secondly, that the government 
of the island should treat with such of the landowners as miffht 
be willing to sell, and that the State, thus becoming possessed 
of the fee-simple of such lands as might thus be sold, should be 
enabled to afford greater facilities for con^'erting the tenants 
into freeholders. Such an arrangement could not probably be 
made without a loan, to be raised by the island government, 
the interest of which would be charged upon the revenues of 
the island. Mr. Labouchere intimated that the government 
would not be indisposed to take into consideration any plan of 
this kind which might be su1)mitted to them, showing in Avhat 
way the interest of such loan could locally be provided for, and 
what arrangement would l)e proposed as to the manner of 'dis- 
posing of the lands of which the fee-simple was intended to be 
bought.^ 

7. From the time of the opening of the normal school, in 
1856, the question as to the admission of the Bible into both 
the central academy and the normal school had been raised, 
and during the session of 1858 petitions in favor of its use in 
these institutions were presented and referred to a committee, 
wdiich wisely reported that the compulsory use of the Protestant 
Bible in mixed schools, like the academy and normal school, 
would be most hijudicious, and recommended that the petition be 
not granted. An amendment was moved by Hon. Mr. Palmer, 
to the effect that the Bible may be used by scholars, with the 

^ CampbcH's Ilistoiy of Priace Edward Island., 



382 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

consent of their parents and guardians. The amendment was 
lost by the casting vote of the speaker, and the report adopted. 
A general election took place in 1858, but when the house met 
it was found that parties were so evenly bahmced that neither 
side could elect a speaker ; a dissolution was therefore resorted 
to, and at the ensuing election the government was defeated, 
and resigned, a new ministry being formed under the leader- 
ship of the Hon. Edward Palmer and Hon. Col. Gray. In 
opening the house the governor intimated that the home gov- 
ernment did not propose recommending to Parliament the 
guaranteeing of the one hundred thousand pounds requestedby the 
Assembly to purchase lands from the proprietors. On receipt of 
this unwelcome intelligence the house passed a resolution, intro- 
duced by Col. Gray, that her majesty be requested to a[)point 
some impartial person, not connected with the island in any way, 
to inquire into the existing difficulties between tenants and pro- 
prietors, and endeavor to suggest some plan for enabling the 
tenants to convert their leasehokls into freeholds ; the means 
sutrjxested beino; a larije remission of overdue rents, and irivino: 
to every tenant having a long lease the option of purchasing 
his land at a certain price at anj^timc that he may be able to do 
so. A serious question was raised between the legislative 
council and the Assembly at this session as to the composition 
of the executive council. The legislative council claimed that 
the principle of responsible government had not been carried 
out, inasmuch as persons were appointed to the departmental 
offices wdio were not members of either the legislative council 
or the House of Assembly, and that as all members of the 
Assembly were compelled by law to appeal to their con- 
stituents after appointment to office under the crown, the ap- 
pointment of persons having no constituents to appeal to was an 
evasion of the statute. The council also complained that not 
one of its members was in the executive council ; nor did it con- 
tain a single Koman Catholic, although more than one-third of 
the population of the island was of that faith. On these grounds 
the legislative council claimed that the executive council was 
illegally constituted, and presented an address to the queen, 
praying that it be remodelled in accordance with the royal 
instructions sent when consent was given to the civil-list bill, in 
1857. 

8. The Assembly passed a counter-address, in which it was 
contended that the executive council was constituted in con- 
formity with the instructichis of 1857 ; and that the feeling of 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 383 

the island was opposed to the presence in the House of Assembly 
of salaried officers of the jjovernnient, as was shown by the 
defeat at the polls, in 1857, of the commissioner of public 
lands, on his appeal to his constituents on accepting olfice, 
and of the same fate having befallen the attorney-general, and 
the treasurer and post master-general. Parliament was pro- 
rogued on the 19th of May, 1859, by Sir Dominick Daly, 
who then delivered his farewell address, he having been ap- 
pointed to another government. Sir Dominick left in May, 
and Hon. Charles Young was sworn in as administrator until 
the arrival of Mr. George Dundas, M.P. for Linlithgowshire, 
who had been appointed lieutenant-governor, and arrived in 
June. During the next month a visit was paid to the island by 
Gen. Sir Fenwick Williams, the hero of Kars, who was most 
enthusiastically received. The legislative council and Assem- 
bly, not working harmoniously together, — as shown by their 
petition and counter-petition on the constitution of the execu- 
tive council, — the governor, in compliance with instructions 
from the home office, called live new members to the board, 
thus making a majority in accord with the Assembly. During 
the session of 18G0 the governor laid before the house a com- 
munication from the Duke of Newcastle, colonial secretary, on 
the subject of the land commission petitioned for at the last 
session of the Assembly. This letter enclosed one from Sir 
Samuel Cunard, and other proprietors, addressed to the duke, 
in which they said, " We have been furnished with a copy of a 
memorial, addressed to her majesty, from the House of Assem- 
bly of Prince Edward Island, on the questions which have arisen 
in connection with the original grants of land in that island, 
and the rights of proprietors in respect thereof. AVe observe 
that the Assembly have suggested that her majesty should ap- 
point one or more commissioners to inquire into the relations 
of landlord and tenant in the island, and to negotiate with the 
proprietors of the township lands for fixing a certain rate of 
price at which each tenant might have the option of purchasing 
his land ; and also to negotiate with the proprietors for a re- 
mission of the arrears of rent in such cases as the commissioners 
might deem reasonable, and proposing that the commissioners 
should report the result to her majesty. As large proprietors 
in this island, we beg to state that we shall acquiesce in any 
arrangement that may be practicable for the purpose of settling 
the various questions alluded to in the memorial of the House 
of Assembly ; but we do not think that the appointment of 



384 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

commissioners in the manner proposed by them would be the 
most desirable mode of procedure, as the labors of such com- 
missioners would only terminate in a report which would not 
be binding on any of the parties interested ; we beg, therefore, 
to suggest that, instead of the mode proposed by the Assembly, 
three commissioners or referees should be appointed, — one to 
be named by her majesty, one by the House of Assembly, and 
one by the proprietors of the land, — and that these commis- 
sioners should have power to enter into all the inquiries that 
may be necessary, and to decide upon the different questions 
which may be brought before them, giving, of course, to the 
parties interested, an opportunity of being heard. We should 
propose that the expense of the commission should be paid by 
the three parties to the reference, that is to say, in equal thirds ; 
and we feel assured that there would be no difficulty in secur- 
ing the adherence of all the landed proprietors to a settlement 
on this footing. The precise mode of carrying it into execu- 
tion, if adopted, would require consideration, and upon that 
subject we trust that your grace will lend your valuable assist- 
ance." 

9. The colonial secretar}^ endorsed the views of the pro- 
prietors, and said, " If the consent of all the parties can be 
obtained to this proposal, I believe that it may offer the means 
of bringing these long-pending disputes to a termination. But 
it will be necessary, before going farther into the matter, to be 
assured that the tenants will accept as binding the decision of 
the commissioners, or the majority of them ; and, as far as 
possible, that the Legislature of the colony would concur in any 
measures which might be required to give validity to that 
decision. It would be very desirable, also, that any commis- 
sioner that might be named l)y the House of Assembly, on 
behalf of the tenants, should go into the inquiry unfettered by 
any conditions such as were proposed in the Assembly last 
year." The proposal of the proprietors was well received by 
the house, and a motion was made on the 13th of April, by 
Hon. ^Ir. Gray, premier, that the proposal be accepted, and the 
Asseml)ly agree to hold itself bound by the decision of the 
commissioners. Mr. Coles proposed, in amendment, that the 
matter should first be laid directly before the people by means 
of a general election ; but his amendment Avas lost, and Colonel 
Gray's motion carried by a vote of nineteen to nine, after 
which it was unanimously agreed that the Hon. Joseph Howe, 
of Nova Scotia, should be the commissioner selected by the 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 385 

house on behalf of the tenants. On the 16th of June, 1860, 
the colonial secretary, in a despatch to Governor Dunclas, ex- 
pressed his satisfaction at the prompt action of the Assembly, 
and announced that the other two commissioners had been ap- 
pointed, and that a royal commission Avould speedily be for- 
warded. The commission consisted of Hon. Joseph Plowe, 
representing the tenants, Mr. John William Kitchie, repre- 
senting the proprietors, and the Hon. John Hamilton Gra}^ 
representing the crown. The commissioners met in the colonial 
building on the 5th of September, 1860, Mr. Gray presiding. 
Mr. Samuel Thompson, of Saint John, N.B., and Mr. Joseph 
Hensley, appeared as counsel for the tenants ; .and Messrs. 
11. G. Haliburton and Charles Palmer as counsel for the pro- 
prietors. Mr, Benjamin Desbrissay was appointed clerk, and, 
after counsel had opened the case on both sides, the hearing of 
evidence was commenced, and the commission afterwards visited 
various parts of the island, hearing evidence, and gathering all 
the information they could, their report not being made until 
the 18th of July, 1861, to which w^e shall refer farther on. At 
the session of 1860 another practical step towards settling the 
land difficulty was taken by the Assembly, by the purchase of 
the large estates of the Earl of Selkirk, containing upwards of 
sixty-two thousand acres, for the very moderate sum of six 
thousand five hundred and eighty-six pounds, being at the rate of 
Af^!/ c^nts an acre, thus enabling the government to convert the 
leasehold tenants into freeholders at a very reasonable rate. In 
the summer of this 3'ear the island was thrown into a fever of 
excitement by the announcement of the intended visit of the 
Prince of Wales, and the island stirred itself to fittingl}' commem- 
orate the first visit of royalty to its shores. His rojaX high- 
ness arrived about noon on Thursday, the 10th of August, in 
H.M.S. " Hero," and landed shortly after. He was received by 
the governor, and the mayor and city officers, by w^hom he was 
conducted to the government house, a detachment of the sixty- 
second regiment acting a guard of honor. Four arches were 
erected on the line of the procession, and the utmost enthusiasm 
was displayed all along the way. At Rochfort square a large 
stand had been erected, and on it were four thousand Sunday- 
school children, who sang the national anthem as the prince 
approached. In the evening the town was illuminated, l)ut the 
etiect was somewhat spoiled by a steady down-pom- of rain ; 
the following day, however, was ffiic, and his royal highness 
held a levee in the afternoon, after which he inspected the 



386 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

volunteers, about five hundred strong, and visited the colonial 
building, where he was presented with addresses of welcome 
by the executive council and the corporation of the city. In 
the evening he attended a ball in the colonial building, and took 
his departure on Saturday morning, after leaving the handsome 
contribution of one hundred and fifty pounds with the lieutenant- 
governor, to be distributed in charity in the manner he thought 
most suitable. 

10. A great sensation was caused in the island ])y the in- 
telligence that the United States steamer " San Jacinto " had 
stopped the British mail steamer " Trent," on her way from 
Havana to St. Thomas, and taken from her the confederate 
agents Slidell and Mason, on the 8th November, 18G1 ; and the 
Prince Edward Islanders shoAved their loyalty by organizing a 
volunteer force of over one thousand men. Fortunately, how- 
ever, war was av^oided, and they were not needed. In this 
year, 1861, a general census was taken, which showed the popu- 
lation to be eighty thousand eight hundred and fifty-six, includ- 
ing three hundred and fifteen Indians. The industries had 
greatly increased, there being eighty-nine fishing establishments, 
which produced twenty-two thousand l^arrels of herring, seven 
thousand barrels of mackerel, thirty-nine thousand quintals of 
codfish, and seventeen thousand gallons offish oil. There were 
one hundred and forty-one grist mills, one hundred and seventy- 
six saw mills, forty-six carding mills, and fifty-five tanneries, 
manufacturing one hundred and forty-three thousand pounds of 
leather. Churches and schools had both increased very greatly, 
the former numbering one hundred and fifty-six, the latter three 
hundred and two. In this year the Legislature passed an act 
admitting the Bible into public schools ; and also established the 
Prince of Yfales College, in commemoration of the visit of his 
royal highness to the island. The executive council appointed 
commissioners to superintend the collection of the products and 
manufactures of the island for the international exhibition at 
London, in 1862, and the duty was so well performed that the 
island made a very praiseworthy exhibit. The intelligence of 
the death of Prince Albert, on the 14th of December, 1861, 
— which reached the island early in January, 1862, — caused 
universal sorrow ; forty-two minute guns were fired, all the 
flags were half-masted, the island went into general mourning, 
and an address of condolence to her majesty in her bereavement 
was adopted by the Assembly. 

11. Great anxiety was felt on the island to learn the result 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 387 

of the report of the royal commission on the land question, and, 
in reply to a request of Governor Dundas, the colonial secretary 
forwarded a copy of the report in a despatch dated the 7th of 
February, 1862. Want of space will not admit of our giving 
more than a brief resume of the very able and exhaustive report 
of the commissioners. Their report was unanimous, and em- 
braced the whole question of land tenure from the time of the 
division of the island, in 17G7, to the date of their report, 18th 
of July, 1861. The commissioners stated that, by making a tour 
of the island and holdiug courts in various parts, they had been 
able to bring the tenants and proprietors face to face, to hear 
both sides of the question, and to endeavor to reconcile existing 
differences ; they had examined into the whole subject of 
escheat, quit-rents, the claims of the old French settlers, the 
Indians, and the lo3'alists. On the subject of escheat they w^ere 
of opinion that there were no just grounds on which the estates 
could now be escheated, on the pica that the original grantees 
had not fultilled the terms on which the lands had been assigned 
them ; this plea was valid with the original proprietors, and it 
would have been quite competent for the government to have 
escheated the estates when the compact was first broken ; but 
after the lapse of nearly a century, the various compromises 
made by the government and the changes of proprietorship 
which had occurred in different generations, the commissioners 
were of opinion that it would be most unjust to the present 
proprietors to attempt to confiscate the lands now. With regard 
to the claims of the descendants of the old French settlers, who 
had occupied the lands before the session of the island to Great 
Britain, the commissioners were of opinion that no relief could 
be aflbrded them ; that their ancestors had been unfortunate in 
being on the losing side in a great national contest was their 
misfortune ; but the commissioners did not see any means, 
especially after so long a lapse of time, of relieving them from 
the penalties which always attached to a state of war. With 
regard to the Indians the commissioners thought that their claim 
should be made good ; they only claimed the small island of 
Lennox, and some grass lands around it, — a location which they 
had held in undisputed possession for upwards of fifty years, 
and which they had greatly improved, having built a church 
and numerous houses; the commissioners thought, therefore, 
that they should not be disturbed. The case of the descendants 
of the loyalists was peculiar ; their ancestors had been induced 
to come to the island at the close of the Revolutionary AYar on 



388 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

the promise of receiving grants of lands from the proprietors ; 
but the agreement had not been fidtilled, and the commissioners 
were of opinion that tlie local government should make free 
grants out of what lands they had, or should acquire from the 
proprietors, to such of the descendants of the loyalists as could 
prove that their ancestors had been induced to come to the island 
on promises which had not been fultilled. As the best remedy 
for existing difficulties between landlord and tenant, the com- 
missioners strongly recommended the Land Purchase Act, which 
had been found to act beneticially in the cases of the Wt>i"i'ell and 
Selkirk estates. They advocated the acquirement by the local 
government of the lands by direct purchase from the pro- 
prietors, and their reallotment to the tenants at rates as low 
as possible for the settled portions ; while the wild and un- 
settled lands could be used by the government as inducements 
to attract new immigration. For this purpose they recom- 
mended a guaranty by the imperial government of one hundred 
thousand pounds, and went into an elaborate statement of the 
revenue and resources of the island to show how interest at the 
rate of six per cent, could be paid, and a sufficient sinking fund 
established to extinguish the debt in twenty years ; and the 
commissioners thouijht this could be done without increasing!: 
taxation, as the great impetus to trade, and the increase of 
immigration which would inevitably follow the permanent set- 
tlement of this vexatious question, and the release of all this 
land now so uselessly tied up, would vastly augment the revenue, 
which was already considerably in excess of the expenditure. 
The commissioners had no doubt but that the propi'ietors would 
be read}^ to sell' when it was found that the Assembly had cash 
to pay ; and the competition of the vendors would protect the 
jjurchaser from being forced to pay too much. As, however, 
there would be some who would not sell unless compelled to, 
the commissioners provided means to force them to part with 
their lands to tenants, exception being made in favor of those 
Avho held tifteen thousand acres or less, or who wished to retain 
various parcels of land which did not aggregate more than that 
quantity. Although the commissioners were of opinion that the 
original grants should not have been made, and that they could 
have been annulled for non-fultilment of the terms on which they 
were made ; still, from the frequent confirmation of the grants 
by the imperial government, the commissioners were of opinion 
that the titles must be held good, and the basis binding; at the 
same time they conceived that it was absolutely necessary for 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 389 

the interests of both the imperial and local governments, 
as well as for the general prosperity of the island, that these 
leaseholds should be converted into freeholds, so that the 
trouble, both to the home and local governments with regard 
to this question might be settled once and forever. In cases, 
therefore, where the local government could not come to an 
amicable settlement with the proprietors, by purchase under the 
land act, the commissioners awarded that tenants who offered 
twenty years' purchase, in cash, to the proprietors, should 
receive a discount often per cent., and be entitled to demand a 
conveyance in fee-simple of the farms they occupied ; the tenant 
being allowed the privilege of paying by instalments if he pre- 
ferred it ; but the payments were not to be less than ten pounds 
at a time, nor extend over a period of more than ten years. 
Where farms were not considered worth twenty years' purchase, 
the tenant might offer what he considered the fair value, and in 
the event of its being refused the matter was to lie submitted to 
arbitration ; if the sum offered was increased by the arbitrators 
the tenant was to pay the sum awarded and the expenses of 
arbitration ; if it was not increased, the proprietor was to bear 
the expense. With regard to arrearages for rent, the commis- 
sioners awarded that all rents should be released, except those 
that had accrued during the three years preceding the 1st of 
May, 1861. "The commissioners closed their report by ex- 
pressing their conviction that, should the general principles 
propounded be accej^ted in the spirit by which they were 
animated, and followed by practical legislation, the colony 
would start forward with renewed energy, dating a new era 
from the year 1861. In such an event, the British government 
would have nobly atoned for any errors in its past policy ; the 
legislation would no longer be distracted with efforts to close 
the courts upon proprietors, or to tamper with the currency of 
the island ; the cry of tenant-rights would cease to disguise the 
want of practical statesmanship, or to overawe the local ad- 
ministration ; men who had hated and disturbed each other 
would be reconciled, and pursue their common interests in 
mutual cooperation ; roads would be levelled, breakwaters built, 
the river-ljeds dredged, new fertilizers applied to a soil annually 
drained of its vitality, emigration would cease, and population 
attracted to the wild lands would enter upon their cultivation 
unembarrassed by the causes which perplexed the early settlers. 
Weighed down by the burden of the investigation, the commis- 
sioners had sometimes felt doubtful of any beneficial results; 



390 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

but they now, at the close" of their labors, indulged the hope 
that, if their suggestions were adopted, enfranchised and dis- 
enthralled from the poisoned garments that enfolded her, Prince 
Edward Island would yet become the Barbadoes of the St. 
Lawrence." 

12. The Assembly met immediately after the receipt of the 
Duke of Newcastle's despatch enclosing the report of the com- 
missioners, and showed their willingness to abide by the decis- 
ion of those gentlemen by at once passing a resolution, by a 
vote of twenty-three to six, pledging itself to introduce a meas- 
ure to give the report effect ; but the proprietors were by no 
means so willing to be bound by the report of the commissioners, 
and the colonial secretary, the Duke of Newcastle, intimated 
that the imperial government would not be inclined to guarantee 
the loan of one hundred thousand pounds, although jirevious sec- 
retaries had favored the loan. On the 5th of April, 18G2, the 
duke forwarded to Governor Dundas the draft of a bill proposed 
by the proprietors, t\xe preamble of which stated that the com- 
missioners had exceeded their powders in proposing to submit the 
matter of the value of the lands to arbitration, and that such a 
course would lead to endless confusion and litigation. The 
local government at once adopted a minute in which they de- 
clared that they would adhere to the report of the commission- 
ers ; that the Assembly considered the imperial government 
pledged to accept that award, and that it was not considered 
that the commissioners had in any way exceeded their powers, 
the wording of the commission giving its members ample and 
unlimited power to adopt any equitable means of settlement. 
The minute denied that arbitration w^ould lead to endless litiga- 
tion, holding that one or two cases in each township would es- 
tablish a standard of values which both parties w^ould adopt 
without more trouble. The minute urged on the imperial gov- 
ernment the amount of anxiety and annoyance, which had ex- 
isted for over half a century, on this subject, and hoped that 
the two bills passed by the Assembly, giving efi'cct to the re- 
port, would be sanctioned, so that the matter might be finally 
settled. The interest of the proprietors, however, was" too 
great at the colonial office, and on the 22d of Jn]y, 1862, 
the Duke of Newcastle forwarded another despatch, which en- 
tirely destroyed any hope of settlement. He stated that the 
main questions the commissioners were to settle were, at Avhat 
rates tenants ought to be allowed to change their leaseholds to 
freeholds, and what amount of arrearage of rent should be re- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



391 



mitted by the landlords ; instead of doing this the commission- 
ers had delegated their power to tix the amount to arbitrators to 
be hereafter appointed, — a thing they had not the power to do ; 
they had been appointed to make the award themselves, not to 
delegate their power to others. If the proprietors had been 
willing to accept the substitution of arl)itrator3 for the award of 
the commissioners, the government would not have objected ; 
but, as the proprietors declined to do so, the government was 
forced to admit the force of their argument that a person who 
has voluntarily submitted his case to the decision of one man 
cannot, Avithout his consent, be compelled to transfer it to the 
decision of another. The two bills passed were disallowed, 
and the land question was as far from settlement as ever. 

13. A special session of Parliament for the consideration of the 
land question was convened for 
the 2d of December, 1862 ; but 
before it met Governor Dundas 
received a despatch from the col- 
onial secretary, informing him 
that a bill passed at the last ses- 
sion, chanoing the constitution 
of the island l)y making the leg- 
islative Assembly elective, had 
received the ro3'al assent. A dis- 
solution was, therefore, neces- 
sary, and advantage was taken 
of the general election to test the 
opinion of the people on the 
award of the commissioners. 
Public opinion was found to be 
almost nnanimous in favor of 
it, and a large majority of the 
house was elected favorable tp adhering to the report. The 
new house met in March, 1863, when the governor announced 
the decision of the colonial secretary adverse to the report of 
the commissioners. A new ministry w\as formed, with Mr. J. 
H. Gray as premier, and the first business transacted was the 
adoption of an address to her majesty, setting forth the whole 
history of the appointment, proceedings, and report of the com- 
mission, and praying her majesty to notify the proprietors that, 
unless they could show cause before a proper tribunal why that 
report should be adhered to, she would give assent to the bills 
giving effect to the award. The Duke of Newcastle replied on 




392 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

the 11th of July, 1863, that he did not know of any method by 
which the matter could be submitted to a court of justice ; that 
he had submitted the case to the law officers of the crown, and 
they were of opinion that the commissioners had not fulfilled 
the duties they were appointed to perform, and that they had 
no power to delegate those duties to others. Still the Assem- 
bly hoped that the home government might be induced to ac- 
cept the suggestions of the commissioners as a basis of action, 
if they rejected the report itself, aud appointed Messrs. Edward 
Palmer and W. H. Pope, delegates to England, to endeavor to 
obtain some equitable terms of settlement. The etforts of this 
delegation, however, Avere no more successful than previous 
efforts in the same direction ; a communication was addressed 
to the Duke of Newcastle, who submitted it to Sir Samuel Cu- 
nard, as representative of the proprietors, who, in reply, ad- 
vanced the novel and almost comical theory that the proprietors 
were the only parties who had suffered l)y the immense grants 
of land made them ; that no individual on the island had l)een 
injured by these grants, but that, on the contrary, the island 
had been greatly benefited, and that, therefore, no concessions 
should be made to the present tenants. Of course the dele- 
gates could accomplish nothing, and the land question contin- 
ued a source of agitation and annoyance until the entrance of 
the province into the Dominion of Canada, on 1st of July, 
1873, — of which we shall speak more fully in the next para- 
graph, — when an agreement was made by which a loan of eight 
hundred thousand dollars was guaranteed to the province to ena- 
ble it to buy up the estates and reallot them. In 1875 commis- 
sioners were appointed to determine the value of the estates 
whose sale, under provision of the act, was rendered compulsory. 
One commissioner was appointed by the governor-general, 
another hy the lieutenant-governor, on behalf of the tenants, 
and the third by the proprietor whose property was to be ex- 
propriated. Thus the troublesome question was at last settled, 
and the injustice of a century ago removed : but only at an im- 
mense cost to the province, for the benefit of the descendants 
of a set of adventurers who sat for years like incubuses on the 
progress of the island, and kept it in a perpetual state of dis- 
quiet and unrest. 

14. The question of confederation was not brought prom- 
inently before the Parliament or peojile of Prince Edward 
Island until the session of 1804, when the following resolution 
was adopted : " That his excellency the lieutenant-governor be 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 393 

authorized to appoint delegates — not to exceed five — to con- 
fer witii delegates who may be appointed by the governments 
of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, for the purpose of dis- 
cussing the expediency of a union of these provinces of Nova 
Scotia, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island under one 
government and legislature, the report of said delegates to be 
laid l)efore the Legislature of the colony before any action shall 
be taken in regard to the proposed question." The delegates 
appointed were Messrs. J. H. Gray, Edward Palmer, W. H. 
Hope, George Coles, and A. A. Macdonald, and they met the 
delegates of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia at Charlottetown, 
on the 1st of September, 1G84, the particulars of which meeting, 
and the subsequent convention at Quebec, on the 10th of October, 
we have already given. The delegates, on their return to 
Prince Edward Island from the Quebec conference, found public 
opinion decidedly opposed to confederation. A large meeting 
was held in Charlottetown, in February, 1865, at which Hon. 
W, H. Pope strongly advocated confederation ; l)ut he was 
ably opposed by the Hon. Mr. Coles and Mr. David Laird, now 
(1877) Governor of Keewatin ; and the sense of the meeting 
was decidedly against him. Other public meetings were held, 
at which resolutions were passed antagonistic to confederation ; 
so that b}" the time the Legislature met, on the 28th of February, 
1865, it was a foregone conclusion that the Quebec scheme would 
be defeated. A series of resolutions favoring union with the 
other provinces was introduced by Hon. W. H. Pope, on the 28th 
of March, and lost ; an amendment declaring confederation 
injudicious being carried by the overbalancing vote of twenty- 
three to five. The subject was brought up again at the session 
of 1866, when the following strongly anti-confederate resolu- 
tion was proposed by Hon. J. C. Pope : " That even a union 
of the continental provinces of British North America should 
have the eftect of strengthening and binding more closely 
together these provinces, or advancing their material interests, 
this house cannot admit, or that a federal union of the North 
America provinces and colonies, which would include Prince 
Edward Island, could ever be accomplished on terms that 
would prove advantageous to the interests and well-ljeing of 
the people of this island, separated as it is, and must ever 
remain, from the neighboring provinces by an immovable bar- 
rier of ice for many months in the year ; and this house deems 
it to be its sacred and imperative duty to declare and record its 
conviction, as it now does, that any federal union of the North 



394 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

Americun colonics that would embrace this island would be as 
hostile to the feelings and wishes, as it would be opposed to 
the best and most vital interests of its people." An effort was 
made to put off a vote until an appeal to the people could be 
had ; but it was overruled, and Mr. Pope's resolution adopted, 
by a vote of twenty-one to seven ; and an address to the queen, 
based on the resolution, adopted and forwarded to England. 

15. While the delegates from Canada, New Brunswick, and 
Nova Scotia were in session in London, in the fall of 1866, the 
Hon. J. C. Pope visited England, and an informal offer was 
made him of a ofrant of eioht hundred thousand dollars as in- 
demnity for the loss of territorial revenue, and for the purpose 
of buying out the proprietors, if the island would enter the 
confederation ; but the offer was declined, and nothing more 
was heard of confederation until the autumn of 1869, Avhen Sir 
John Young, afterwards Lord Lisgar, Governor-General of 
British North America, visited the island, when the subject was 
informally discussed with members of the local government. 
In December following, a formal proposition was made, from'the 
Dominion ministry, of terms on which the island would be ad- 
mitted into the confederation. This was submitted to the ex- 
ecutive council, who rejected the offer on the ground that 
sufficient inducement was not offered the island ; and nothing 
more was heard of confederation for six years. But a new and 
powerful influence Avas now at work to induce the people to 
think more favorably of a union with the upper provinces. 
Prince Edward Island is remarkably destitute of stone or gravcL 
and it has always been very ditiicult to make or keep the roads 
in order. As trade and commerce increased with increasing 
IDopulation, so was this want more keenly felt, and it at length 
became evident that, to keep pace with the rest of the Avorld, 
Prince Edward Island must have a railway as well as other 
places. On the 3d of April, 1871, the Hon. J. C. Pope intro- 
duced a resolution in the House of Assembly to the effect that, 
in view of the difficulty of obtaining stone or gravel to keep 
the roads in order, and the rapidly increasing trade of the 
island, it was necessary to have a railway. A bill was accord- 
ingly introduced authorizing the government to build a railroad 
from Georgetown to Cascumpec, touching at Sunnnerside and 
Charlottetown, with branches to Souris and Tignish, at a cost 
of not more than twenty thousand dollars per mile, including 
equipment, provided the contractors would take bonds of the 
island in payment. The bill was "put through under whip and 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 395 

spur," and in two days after it was introduced passed its final 
reading by a vote of eighteen to eleven. But the government 
soon found it had assumed an enterprise it was incompetent to 
conduct to a successful termination. It was easy enough to 
pass a bill to build a railroad, and get it commenced, but it was 
very difficult to obtain money to build it with ; and when the 
government began to be distressed for means to carry out its 
great enterprise, it naturally looked to the Dominion to see 
whether it was yet too late to be taken into its fold and helped 
to accomplish that which it was impossible to achieve alone. 

16. In January, 1873, the Hon. Mr. Haythorne intro- 
duced a minute in the council to the eflect that, if the Do- 
minion would offer liberal terms, the government would 
recommend a dissolution of the house, so that the people may 
have an opportunity of saying at the polls whether they prefer 
to enter the Dominion, or submit to the extra taxation necessary 
to build the railroad. On the suggestion of the Privy Council 
of the Dominion, that a deputation be sent to Ottawa to confer 
on the subject, th'e Hon*. Mr. Haythorne and the Hon. 
David Laircl were so deputed, but were not authorized to 
do more than learn what terms could be" obtained and report to 
the house. A general election was held in March, and the 
house met again on the 27th of April, when the governor sent 
down the papers referring to the proposed union, and expressed 
a hope that the house would not lose this opportunity of enter- 
ing the union. On the 2d of May the committee to whom the 
matter had been referred reported adversely, not considering 
that Prince Edward Island had been ofiered sufficiently good 
terms. The committee, however, recommended the appoint- 
ment of a committee to proceed to Ottawa to endeavor to obtain 
better terms. Messrs. J. C. Pope, T. H. Haviland, and George 
W. Howlan were appointed such committee, and proceeded to 
Ottawa, where they had an interview Avith the governor-general 
— Lord Dufferin — on the 7th of May. A committee of the 
Privy Council, consisting of Messrs. J. A. MacDonald, Samuel 
L. Tilley, Charles Tupper, and Hector Langevin, afterwards 
met the Prince Edward Island delegation, and on the 15th of 
May an agreement was arrived at which was satisfactory to 
both parties. The terms were substantially as follows ; On 
condition of Prince Edward Island giving up her revenues, the 
Dominion agreed to assume a debt equal to fifty dollars a head 
on the population of the island, which, according to the census 
of 1871, was ninety-four thousand and twenty-one, thus making 



396 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



the debt Prince Edward Island was authorized to incur four 
million seven hundred and one thousand and fifty dollars. As 
the island had only a very small debt it was to receive interest 
at the rate of five per cent, on the difference between the amount 
of its debt and the amount authorized until the debt amounted 
to four million seven hundred and one thousand and fifty dollars. 
The Dominion government agreed to advance to the island 
eight hundred thousand dollars for the purchase of the pro- 
prietors' estates, at five per cent, interest, which interest was to 
be deducted from a yearly allowance of forty-five thousand dol- 
lars made to the province of the Dominion. For the support 
of the government and Legislature of the province the Dominion . 
agreed to pay thirty thousand dollars, and an annual grant of 
eighty cents per head of the population, as shown by the census 
of 1871, it being agreed that the next census w^as to be taken 
in 1881. The Dominion government also assumed the railway 
which was then being constructed, and agreed to pay the salaries 
of the lieutenant-governor, and judges of the superior, district, 
or county courts ; the expenses of the custom-house, post oflSce, 
and fisheries department ; and provide for the maintenance of 
the militia, light-houses, quarantine, marine hospitals, geological 
survey, and penitentiary. The resolution accepting these terms 
as the basis of union was introduced into the Assembly by Hon. 
J. C. Pope, and carried by a vote of twenty-seven to two, after 
which an address to her majesty was unanimously adopted, 
praying for the admission of Prince Edward Island to the 
union ; which prayer being granted, the province was admitted 
to the confederation on tlae 1st of July, 1873, that being the 
sixth anniversary of the formation of the Dominion. The fol- 
lowing is a list of governors of Prince Edward Island from its 
erection into a province to its joining the Dominion : — 



Walter Patterson, Esq, . . 1770 

Gen. Edmund Fanning . . 1786 

Col. J. F. W. Desbarres . . 1805 

Charles D. Smith .... 1813 

Col. John Pveady .... 1824 
Hon. Geo. Wright, Admst., 

1825 and 1835 

Sir Aretus W. Young . . . 1831 

Sir John Harvey .... 1836 



Sir C. A. Fitzroy .... 1837 

Sir H. V. Huntley .... 1841 

Sir Donald Campbell . . . 1847 

Sir Alex. Bannermaa . . . 1851 

Sir Dominick Daly .... 1854 

Geo. Dundas, Esq 1859 

Sir R. Hodgson 1868 

W. C. F. Robinson .... 1870 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 397 

CHAPTER XXXIII. 

THE UNITED STATES FROM 1840 TO 1867. 

1. We must now turn awhile from the central channel of 
our subject to notice its environment. We have followed the 
British provinces, which constitute the Dominion of Canada, 
excepting British Columbia, JNIanitoba, and the Northwest terri- 

.tories to the Confederation of 1^07. Let us go back, as it were, 
and bring forward the contemporary, history of the United 
States and England from the date at which we last left these 
nations, 1840, to 1867. After this, the reader's attention will 
again be turned to the Dominion of Canada, when the fortunes 
of the youthful nation, as such, will be traced through the first 
ten years of its existence, and in connection with which we 
shall trace from their beginning the important events in the 
history of British Columbia, Manitoba, and other portions of 
British America, from which it is expected new provinces will 
arise to swell the population, power, and importance of the 
Dominion. The dates on which these provinces and territories 
were admitted into the Confederation will afibrd us points from 
which we may logically divert for this purpose. 

2. First, then, as to affairs across the border in the United 
States. President Harrison's death occurred thirty-one days 
after his inauguration ; he was sixty-eight years old, and the 
contest had been one of the most arduous ever, at that time, 
fought for the presidency. Vice-President Tyler was his suc- 
cessor, and he failed to indorse the measures of the party by 
which he had been chosen. The "Log-Cabin" president's 
death Avas esteemed a great loss to the country. The bill 
establishing a United States bank was vetoed by President 
Tyler. The unpopular president never regained the confidence 
of his party, but eventually died in Richmond, Va., a member , 
of the Confederate Congress. 

3. Domestic Difficulties. The Dorr rebellion was the 
result of partisan strife in Rhode Island, and two sets of State 
officers were elected. Gov. Dorr made an attack on the State 
arsenal, but was defeated, arrested, and, after trial, sentenced, 
ill 1842, to imprisonment for life. He was pardoned in 1845, 
and in the mean time the demands of the party once led by hira 



398 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

had been conceded. The old "patroon" rights in New York 
State had long been a source of disquietude; but in 1844 the 
difficulty came to open war. The anti-rent j)arty lynched those 
who paid rent to the "patroons," and some officers were killed 
while serving processes. Military force suppressed the dis- 
turbance, and eventually the "patroons" abandoned their light 
and almost forced demands for rent. 

4. The Nauvoo War. The Mormons settled in Nauvoo, 
111., in 1840, and built a city. They were followers of Joe 
Smith, who pretended to have found gold plates containing a 
revelation from God ; but nobody ever saw the plates. The 
practices of the Mormons excited enmity among the people 
surrounding them, and- in 1845 Smith, who had entrusted him- 
self to the civil authorities for defence, was taken out of their 
hands by a mob and murdered. The city was bombarded for 
three days, until the I\Iormons abandoned the position and fled, 
first to Iowa, next to Nebraska, and finally to Salt Lake. 

5. Annexations and Settlements. Gen. Sam. Houston, 
who was elected president of the Texas republic in 1836, ap- 
plied for the admission of Texas to the Union in 1844, and, 
after much debate in Congress and l)efore the people, the State 
was admitted in the winter of 1844-45. The admission of the 
new State was favored by the Democrats, who nominated Polk 
as president, and opposed by the Whigs, who put forward 
Clay ; the result was the reception of Texas, and the election of 
President James K. Polk. The north-west boundary of the 
United States came into question in this term of office, but 
was not settled until the next, when 49° Avas agreed upon as a 
compromise of the claim of 54° 40'. 

9. Gen. Taylor's Campaign. The disputed territory on 
the Rio Grande was to be held by Gen. Taylor and his army, 
and he built Fort Brown as his base of supplies. The first fight 
occurred at Palo Alto, where an army of six thousand Mexi- 
cans, under Arista, drew up across the road and disputed the 
passage of the Americans. Gen. Taylor's army consisted of 
two thousand men ; but the attack was made instantaneously, 
and the enemy routed with great slaughter. The American 
force lost only nine men. The day following, at Resaca de la 
Palma, the Mexicans were found in a deep ravine, blocking the 
road, and with their artillery in position to inflict considerable 
damage. The post was flanked by thickets, and generally had 
been well chosen. The guns were the main difficulty, but they 
were captured by Capt. May and his cavalry, and Gen. La 



""^c 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



399 



Vc«-a wus mado a prisoner at the same time. The infantry com- 
pleted the triumph, and the Mexicans crossed the Eio Grande 
in great disorder. 

7. Capture of Monterey. Gen. Taylor carried this city 
and fortress by assault, September 24, 1846, with about six 




13AECLE OF KESACA EE IJV PAI-ILV. 



thousand troops, the position being very strong, Init poorly 
defended l)y the garrison of ten thousand men. Tiie streets 
were barricaded, and tlio dwellings on either side tilled with 
troops, who poured a deadly fire on the assailants ; but that 
difBculty was met by capturing the houses and opening a pas- 
sago through the walls from one to the other. Some travelled 
along the roofs of the captured dwellings, and the city surren- 
dered, the garrison l)cing allowed the honors of war. 

8. Victory AT BuENA Vista. Gen. Santa Anna wished to 
crush this army, while a large detachment was away serving 
with Gen. Scott Ijefore Mexico, but he could not make his ar- 
rangements until Fel)ruary 23, 1847. The mountain pass at 
Buena Vista was held by the American forces, and they were 
attacked l)y Santa Anna in person, with twenty thousand picked 
men. The battle lasted all the day long, commencing at sun- 
rise, and the United States infantry was overwhelmed by 
superior numbers ; but the artillery rendered such ctfectual 



400 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

service, under Gen. Bragg, that the Mexican force was com- 
pelled to retire during the night, and Gen. Taylor had accom- 
plished the work assigned to him. The justice of the war was 
hotly contested by Abraham Lincoln and others in Congress, 
but the execution was admitted to be admirable. 

9. Gen. Kearney's army was under orders to conquer New 
Mexico and California, and his force started from Fort Leaven- 
worth, in Kansas Territory, June, 184G, to make the journey to 
Santa Fe. Col. Doniphan headed the men on this march, and 
after two well-fought battles, with one thousand men under his 
orders, conquered the province and city of Chihuahua. From 
that point the march was continued towards California, but 
before his arrival the work had been all but accomplished. 
Capt. Fremont, with a small force, was in the California country 
the preceding Avinter, when he learned that the Spaniards were 
about to expel American settlers, and he temporarily abandoned 
his work of an explorer and 'surveyor to rescue his countrymen 
from injustice. His conduct in this campaign added California 
to the United States. The Mexican forces, largely superior in 
numbers, were routed in every conflict, and by the aid of Gen. 
Kearney, who arrived in time to take part in the last battle, the 
conquest was completed. When Fremont first intervened he 
was not aware that war had been declared, but he was aided 
materially in his operations by Commodores Stockton and Sloat. 
Gen. Scott's campaign commenced at Vera Cruz, where he 
hinded with twelve thousand men, on the 29th of March, 1847. 
The Mexicans did not oppose his landing, and after a bombard- 
ment, which lasted four days, the city and castle of San Juan de 
Ulloa were surrendered to the American arms. 

10. Cerro Gordo. Early in April the army began its march 
to the capital, but the mountain pass of Cerro Gordo Avas 
strongly fortified by the Mexicans. The general conveyed his 
cannon, by means of tackle, up the fiice of the precipice, into 
positions which commanded the Mexican lines, and an attack 
in front was commenced simultaneously with the cannonade, on 
the 18th of April. The effect was almost instantaneous, and 
Santa Anna very narrowly escaped capture at that poi)it ; three 
thousand prisoners were taken, tive thousand stand of arms, and 
forty-three pieces of artillery. The moral effect of the victory 
was still greater than the material advantage, as other positions 
with large supplies of ammunition and guns were al)andoned, 
Puebla and Perote were occupied without resistance, and at the 
latter town fifty-four cannon were captured. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 401 

11. Fall of Mexico. Gen. Scott, having been reinforced, 
resumed his march with eleven thousand men, on the 7th of 
August, arriving on the crest of the Cordilleras on the 10th. 
From that point the capital could be seen ; but there was a force 
of thirty thousand men to dispute the approach, and numerous 
strong fortitications. The least defended route was pursued, 
and Contreras,an entrenched camp, fourteen miles south of the 
city, was reached on the morning of the 19th. The force under 
Gen. Valencia was defeated and the camp taken by assault. 
The operations of the army covered much ground during that 
day and the next ; but, on the evening of the 20th, the fugitives 
from many points had been pursued to within one mile and a 
half of the capital. Churubusco and San Antonio had been 
carried ; three thousand prisoners had been taken, four thousand 
men had been killed or wounded, the army was dispersed, 
thirty-seven pieces of ordnance had been won, and there was 
nothing before the city but surrender. An armistice for nego- 
tiation was being improved by the Mexicans in strengthening 
their works, and, in consequence. General Scott commanded an 
assault on the 8th of September. The outworks were carried 
in succession day after day, until the castle of Chapultepec, 
which commanded the city, was stormed on the 13th, and early 
on the following day the army marched into the city, which the 
Spaniards had held since the ftiU of the Montezumas. The war 
was ended, although the treaty was not signed until the begin- 
ning of February, 1848, under which the vast territory reaching 
west to the Pacitic Ocean and south to the Gila, became part of 
the United States. 

12. The Wilmot Proviso was introduced to Confess in 
1846, by David Wilmot, of Pennsylvania, seeking to prohibit 
slavery in any territory that might l)e acquired during the war. 
The proposition provoked much debate in the country at large, 
as well as in the House and Senate. 

13. Gold in Califoenia. Gold was found in Sacramento 
Valley in February, 1848, immediately after the territory came 
into possession of the United States, and within a few months 
emigration had commenced from all parts of the world. Since 
the Crusades there had never been such an exodus, and San 
Francisco was speedily changed from a half-sleeping Spanish 
seaport to the busiest hive in the world. The city did not im- 
mediatel}'' become l^eautiful, as it now is, but the gainful indus- 
tries commenced in those early days have since made California 
the world's wonder. The gold itself may not have been a 



402 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

benefit to the State, as it has cost more in the procurement than 
the metal realizes on sale ; but the possession of such a popula- 
tion as that gathered in California makes amends for any such 
trivial drawback. Streets, banks, churches, halls, and gam- 
bling-houses, provided for all that was good and evil in the 
pco[)le, who were crowded together in the pursuit of gold, and 
when vice and crime outstripped organization, the work of re- 
pression and punishment was taken up by the orderly citizens, 
so that lawlessness found a curb in the genius of the commuuity 
for self-government. The annexation of California proved to 
be one of the greatest events in the history of the United States 
during the decade in wdiich it happened. 

14. Selecting a successor showed that there were throe 
parties in the community ruled over by Martin Van Buren. 
The Free Soilers renominated the president ; the Democrats 
named Lewis Cass as their choice, and the Whigs gave their 
suffrages to Gen. Zachary Taylor, whose services in jNIexico 
made him a popular idol, and w^hose sterling qualities well 
deserved support. The Free Soilers were opposed to the ex- 
tension of slavery, and most of the party were abolitionists ; 
but their day was not yet. Gen. Taylor was elected. President 
Taylor died July 9, 1850, but his career in office fully justified 
the expectations of his friends. Upou his decease Millard 
Fillmore became president, and his services were in every 
sense satisfactory to his supporters. 

Ie5. Clay's Omnibus Bill w'as the great question of this 
era, and it arose upon the application of California to be 
admitted to the Union as a free State. The two parties, pro- 
slavery and abolition, not yet distinctly organized as such, were 
on the Avatch continually, and the least observant could not fail 
to perceive that before many years there must be a crisis on 
that issue. Henry Clay strove for a peaceful solution of the 
difficulty, and his compromise measure of 1850 was temporarily 
accepted. It provided for the inclusion of California as a free 
State, and the formation of two territories, Utah and New 
Mexico, without any legislative intervention as to slavery. 
Texas w\is to be paid ten million dollars to surrender its claims 
on New jNIexico ; the slave-trade was prohibited in the District 
of Columbia and the Fugitive Slave LaAV Avas enacted. From 
the i)resent point of view there was much evil in such a measure, 
but the growth of public opinion warranted no more at that 
time. Daniel Webster was eloquent and impressive on this 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 403 

occasion, and both orators died within two years of the passage 
of that measure. 

16. FiLiBUSTERiXG EXPLOIT. Cuba, whose condition has 
long seemed as though a live man struggled in the rigid em- 
brace of death, provoked in this term a filibustering attempt 
at annexation ; but the expedition, in which six hundred men 
were active participants, ended in total defeat, and the leader 
was executed. 

17. Franklin Pierce was nominated by the Democrats as 
the next president after FiHmore, and the president, against 
whom no one had anything to aver, was not renominated. 
Gen. Scott was put forward by the Whigs, and both parties 
bade for the support of the pro-slavery Democrats, by uphold- 
ing Clay's compromise, against which the more logical Free-Soil 
party inveighed bitterly. The Democrats elected Franklin 
Pierce. The expedition to Japan enhanced the value of Fill- 
more's term of oltice, and assisted the spread of civilization and 
commerce in that country. 

18. Stephen A. Douglas was the most prominent figure 
in American history after the great leaders passed away, and 
his measure as to " Squatter Sovereignty " in Kansas and Ne- 
braska, in 1853-4, was the next compromise on the slavery 
question. The Missouri compromise had been abandoned prac- 
tically before this time, as the pro-slavery men saw that the 
rapid growth of free States must work the ruin of their policy, 
unless their system was allowed indefinite expansion. The de- 
bate on the measure now to be carried provoked strong feeling, 
and the violence of the supporters of the slavery policy was 
terribly illustrated in an assault, murderous in its character, 
upon Charles Sumner by Preston S. Brooks. 

19. War in Kansas. The territory of Kansas was to de- 
termine for or against slavery, by voting on the question under 
the " Squatter Sovereignty " clause of the settlement, and the 
consequence, as might have been anticipated, Avas war to the 
knife. President Pierce appointed governors who favored the 
policy under which he was elected, l>ut every man sent l)y him 
to fill that ofiiice became at last an advocate of the cause of the 
Free-State party in Kansas, so violent and unjustifiable were 
the proceedings of the other side in the territory. x\rmed 
emigrants, sent from the Northern States, eventually took the 
control of matters out of the hands of the "Border Ruffians" 
from Missouri and other States in the slave interest, so that on 



404 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

the election of President Lincoln Kansas was admitted to the 
Union as a free State. 

20. Foreign Policy. "The Gadsden Purchase" secured 
to the United States a large area of country from Mexico, at a 
cost of ten million dollars. This necessity arose in consequence 
of a dispute as to boundaries consequent on the use of foreign 
and erroneous maps in the former treaty, and the outlay named 
was better policy than armed intervention with a State so com- 
pletely humbled as Mexico. The expedition to Japan, under 
Commodore Perry, despatched b}'" the action of the foregoing 
administration, resulted in a commercial treaty of much value 
to the United States, which was ratified in 1854, and this move- 
ment was much applauded. 

21. Slavery tactics, and the movements rendered necessary 
thereby, more especially when the action of the pro-slavery 
party in Kansas became known, caused great excitement in every 
State during the presidential campaign. Stephen A, Douglas 
expected the nomination from the Democratic part}', but, finding 
that it would cause a division, he withdrew his name, and James 
Buchanan was elected on that platform. The Repu])licans, Avho 
had already superseded the Whigs as a party, went for Col. 
Fremont, who was largely supported, and the American party 
nominated IMillard Fillmore. 

22. The Deed Scott Case. The Fugitive Slave Law, 
added to the Kansas difliculty, had brought affairs to a very 
heated condition on the slavery issue, when the Dred Scott case 
arose, upon which Chief Justice Taney decided in the Supreme 
Court of the United States that slave-owners might carry their 
human chattels into any State in the Union without invalidating 
their rights in such property. With such an interpretation of 
the law staring them in the face, the public concluded that 
slavery must be dealt with by distinct enactments, and as vigor- 
ous administration, without delay. "Personal liberty" bills 
were passed in some Northern States, decreeing trial by jury 
for slaves arrested within their boundaries, and disturbances 
were common whenever slaves were arrested in the States in- 
dicated. The case of Scott and his wife called for much 
sympathy. 

23. John Brown, at Harper's Ferry, commanded still greater 
feeling. The old man had suffered terribly in Kansas, at the 
hands of the " Border Ruffians," one of his sons being murdered, 
and another driven insane, and after rendering all the aid in his 
power to make Kansas a free State, he turned his attention to 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 405 

the general spread of abolition. He was a religious entiiusiast 
of the highest type, descended from one of the Pilgrim families 
in the " Mayflower, " and he set no value upon his life, compared 
with the principle upon which he had concentrated his love. 
With two sons, who had been Avith him in Kansas, and some 
friends, about twenty in all, he surprised and captured the 
arsenal and armory at Harper's Ferry, proclaiming freedom to 
all slaves, on the IGth of October, 1859. The Virginia militia 
captured him and his friends on the 17th, before any assistance 
could reach him, and he, with all his party, sulfered the penal- 
ties of the law. Captain John Brown, whose name will live in 
history, was hanged in Charleston, December 2, 1859. The 
man moved before public opinion was ripe. 

24. Slavery or secession was the issue broadly announced 
by the Southern States during the fall campaign, in the year 
18G0, and, but for division in the Democratic ranks, the party 
might have elected Stephen A. Douglas. That leader had, 
however, become unpopular with the extreme section of his 
part}', ])ecause he would not concede all their demands, and 
they divided in their nomination, one section sustaining Douglas 
and squatter sovereignty, the other presenting John C. Breck- 
enridge, with all the consequences of the Dred Scott decision. 
Breckenridge did not come near 1)eing elected, but his nomina- 
tion destroyed the chance of Mr. Douglas, who procured on the 
popular vote one million three hundred and sixty-tivc thousand 
nine hundred and seventy-six, against Lincoln's one million 
eight hundred and fifty-seven thousand six hundred and ten, 
while Breckenridge carried eight hundred and forty-seven 
thousand nine hundred and tifty-three. John Bell, of Tennessee, 
received five hundred and -ninety thousand six hundred and 
thirty-one votes. Abraham Lincoln, who was at that time con- 
tent to let slavery stand unmolested, but would not allow it to 
be carried into new territory, was elected. 

25. State Rights. The Southern States now made ready 
for secession, as they averred that the government was falling 
into the hands of their enemies. They held, with Calhoun, the 
doctrine of State rights, which involved full liberty to leave the 
Union at any time. The beginning, long prepared for, was 
made in December, 1800, when South Carolina passed an 
ordinance of secession, being followed by Alabama, Florida, 
Georgia, Louisiana, IMississippi, and Texas. " The Confederate 
States of America" organized at Montgomery, Alabama, in 
February, 1861, by electing officers. Jefferson Davis became 



406 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

president of the seceding States, and Alexander II. Stephens, 
vice-president. President Buchanan did nothing to avert the 
cahiniity of civil war now imminent, although General Scott 
was urorent for action on the instant. United States arms, 
buildings, and properties were seized as of right, and many 
supposed that the Union would be broken without a struggle. 

26. Major Anderson, who commanded the United States 
forces in South Carolina, moved from Fort JMoultrie to Fort 
Sumter, Ijecause the latter better admitted of defence, and ho 
anticipated the reception of orders ; but none came. The 
steamer which was to have given him reinforcements and sup- 
plies had been driven back by Confederate forces from Fort 
^loultrie. Buchanan was apparantly too much afraid of the 
Confederates to relieve the threatened fort, unless by their per- 
mission, and they said that any decisive act in that direction 
would commence the war. Under such circumstances, and in 
imminent peril of assassination, the new president went to his 
inauguration. 

27. Fkom Independence to Secession. The struggle to 
maintain the integrity of the Union being on the threshold, Ave 
may as well consider what were the forces to be encountered. 
When the famous declaration Avas signed and substantiated there 
were thirteen States in the Union, and since that time twenty-one 
had been constituted and admitted. Vermont, or Green INIoun- 
tain, came fourteenth on the roll, March 4, 1791. First ex]:)lored 
by Cham[)lain in 1609, it Avas not settled until 1724. There 
AA'ero disputes as to territorial rights before 1776, and some 
blood had been shed in the quarrel between Ncav Hampshire 
and XcAV York; but in 1777 the inhabitants claimed to be an 
independent State. Ncav York relinquished her claim, for thirty 
thousand dollars, in 1791, and Vermont AAas the first State to 
come in under the constitution. 

28. Kentucky, the arena of Daniel Boone's exploits, came 
next in order, being admitted June 1, 1792. The battles Avith 
the Indians on this territory gave to the region the title of "the 
dark and bloody ground." Boonesborough Avas the first settle- 
ment here, but Virginia then engrossed the Avhole of this section 
of the country until 1790, There Avere many attempts to set 
up an independent organization, but Avithout substantial results 
until 1790, Avhen, under the constitution, Kentuck}' Avas made a 
territory. AVhen admitted as a State there AA'ere about seventy- 
five thousand inhabitants in Kentucky. 

29. Tennessee, named from " the river with the great bend," 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 407 

was the sixteenth State. The first permanent settlement south 
of Pennsylvania and west of the Alleghanies was made at Fort 
London, near the site of Knoxville, Tenn., in 1756. The next, 
within this area, was made in 1780, where now Nashville 
flourishes. North Carolina surrendered her claim to the terri- 
tory in 1789, and, after being joined to Kentucky for a time, 
Tennessee was admitted to the Union, Juno 1, 17!)6. Ohio, 
so called from "the beautiful river," came in as the seventeenth, 
the first in the great north-west, Nov. 21), 1802. Baron La 
Salle was the first European explorer, and the first settlement 
was made at Marietta in 1788. 

30. Louisiana, the eighteenth State, named after the French 
king, was admitted April 8, 1812. Father Marquette led the 
way to the Mississippi, under information procured from the 
Indians, and Baron La Stalla continued the exploration, giv- 
ing the name of Louisiana to a large area of country, but no 
permanent settlement was made until 1099, at Biloxi, near the 
mouth of the river, and in 1712 Ncav Orleans was founded. 
The territory passed into the hands of Spain in 1702, but 
Napoleon procured the title from the Spaniards in 1800, and 
sold the area to the United States for fifteen million dollars in 
1803. When Louisiana was admitted as a State, the remainder 
of that country was known as the territory of Missouri. This 
State seceded. Indiana came in on the 11th of December, 
1810, having been constituted a territory within its present 
limits in 1809. Indian difficulties retaided its growth, but its 
progress became rapid after 1810. This, the second State in 
the north-west, is the nineteenth in the Union. 

31. JNIississippi, named from the greatest river known to 
commerce, the twentieth State in the Union, Avas admitted Dec. 
10, 1817. De Soto was the first explorer. Settlements, estab- 
lished by the French in 1700 and 1703, were destroyed by the 
Indians in 1728, and there were fierce wars with the tribes in 
consequence. The Mississippi territory was constituted in 
1798, and the Alabama territory was cut off in March, 1817. 
Mississippi seceded. Illinois, named from the " River of Men," 
was in the territory first visited by Marquette, followed by La 
Salle ; but the territory so named was much larger than the 
State which was admitted Dec. 3, 1818, the third in the north- 
west, twenty-first in the Union. The Indians were very per- 
tinacious in their hostility to the first settlers, but the Black 
Hawk war ended such difiieulties. Chicago is the metroiiolis 
of the north-west, and its growth seems almost miraculous. 



y 



408 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

32. Alabama came in Dec. 14, 1819, iiumljcring itself the 
twenty-second State. The Creek Indians were great enemies 
of the early settlers. The name " Here we rest," must have 
seemed a mockery to the pioneers. The first settlement 
dates from 1702, at Bienville Fort, and Mobile, on the bay of 
that name, was founded in 1711, being for many years the 
capital of the French possessions in Louisiana. Gen. AVilkin- 
son took possession of this area in 1813, but terms of purchase 
were concluded with Spain six years later. This State was 
strong for secession in 18G0, and later. Maine was originally 
associated with Massachusetts and New Hampshire, being part 
of the grant to Gorges and Mason from the council of New 
England and Plymouth. ISIaino subsequently remained in 
Gorges family's possession until his grandson, in 1677, sold 
his rights to Massachusetts for six thousand seven hundred and 
fifty dollars. That State relinquished its claims in 1820, when 
the State came in, the twenty-third in the Union. 

33. Missouri, deriving its name from "Muddy Water," was 
admitted Aug. 10, 1821, the twenty-fourth in the Union. St. 
Genevieve, the earliest settlement in the territory, dates from 
1755, but United States interest in the soil dates only from the 
purchase in 1803. The territory of INlissouri dates from the 
admission of Louisiana to the Union in 1812, but the dimen- 
sions of Missouri were fixed by the iMissouri Compromise, in 1821, 
under which the State was admitted. There were additions 
made to the State subsequently. Missouri was in sympathy 
with the Southern Confederacy, but the State did not secede. 
Arkansas, named from an Indian tribe, entered the Union, 
June 15, 1836, being discovered in 1635, and settled by the 
French in 1670, near St. Francis river. This, the twenty- 
fifth State in the Union, seceded March 4, 1861, but, before 
the close of 1863, the government of the country was in the 
hands of United States troops, and it continued to be under a 
military government until 1868, when Congress readmitted the 
State into the Union. 

34. Michigan dates as a State from January 26, 1837. Fur- 
traders and Jesuit missionaries were the first white visitors to 
this region, and Detroit Avas founded from Canada in 1701 ; 
org;niized as a territory in 1805 ; the boundaries of the State 
were fixed at the time of admission, and Michigan is the twenty- 
sixth State. Florida, one of the seceders, was organized as a 
territory in March, 1819, when the purchase from Spain had 
been consummated, and was admitted March 3, 1845. This 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 409 

was the twenty-seventh State. Its early history has been given 
in connection with the Seminole war. Texas was first explored 
by Ponce De Leon, afterwards l)y La Salle, Avho fonnded settle- 
ments at Matagorda liay, and built a French fort on the Lavaca. 
Spain established missions here, but failed to civilize the 
country or the people ; so that there was no town worthy of 
the name in 1820, when a native of Connecticut commenced 
to attract emigrants to a grant procured from JVIexico. Within 
ten years there were twenty thousand Americans in Texas, and 
Mexico becoming jealous and oppressive, the people organ- 
ized a revolution, defeated Santa Anna, became a republic 
under President Houston, and so continued until admitted to 
the Union in December, 1845. Texas was one of the first to 
secede, and was the twenty-eighth in the L^nion. 

35. Iowa came in December 28, 184G. The name, signifying 
in the Indian tongue " Drowsy Ones," does not describe the 
people. Dubuque, a French Canadian miner, was the first to 
discover the value of the country near the city which l)ears his 
name, and procured a grant of land from the Indians, as well 
as permission to mine from the Spanish authorities in this 
country. He carried on lead-mining until his death, transport- 
ing the lead to St. Louis, Missouri, and he was also a trader. 
After his death, in 1810, the mines were at first worked by the 
Indians, and then abandoned until 1832, when the mines were 
again worked until the miners were dispossessed Ijy military 
orders pending the opening of the territory as a settlement. 
Dubuque was Ibunded in 1833. Iowa, the twenty-ninth State, 
was reduced to its [)rescnt limits at the time of its admission. 
Wisconsin, once part of ijDuisiana, then of Illinois, then of 
Michigan, and afterwards of Iowa territor}-, was the thirtieth 
State, and was admitted May 29, 1848. The first exploration 
dates from 1(J39, and first settlement at Green Bay from 1745. 
It became a territory in 183G. The name in the Indian tongue 
signifies " Gathering of the Watt^rs." The ravages of I'lack 
Hawk and his warriors were in part experienced in Wisconsin. 

3G. California was visited ])y Sir Francis Drake in pursuit 
of Spanish treasure ships in 1578-79, and he wintered in San 
Francisco Bay. The Spaniards established missions here, at 
San Diego, in 17G9, and at San Francisco, in 177G, but in 1835 
there was only one habitation near the bay. The monks had 
the entire management of the country until the Mexican revolu- 
tion in 1822 upset the Spanish power. The white population of 
the territory in 1831 was under five thousand, but after 1843 there 



' xX 



410 HISTORY or DOMINION OF CANADA, 

was some emigration from this country, and the possession was 
eventually wrested from Mexico by Capt. Fremont and Gen. 
Kearney, to become one of the most prosperous States in the 
Union. Mexico ceded the tei-ritory to the United States at the 
close of the war. The area thus added to the United States 
embraced what is known as California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, 
parts of Colorado and New Mexico ; in all about four hundred 
and lifty thousand square miles, with variations of soil and climate 
capable of j)roducing all the vegetal treasures of the globe. 
Nearly all of these advantages are being improved. California 
came into the Union September 9, 1850, and is numbered as 
the thirty-first State. 

37. ^linnesota, from the Indian " Cloudy Water," takes its 
name from the river. La Salle and Father Hennepin were the 
first explorers, in 1680 ; but Fort Snellingonly dates from 1819, 
and St. Paul was founded in 184(3, the territory being organized 
three years later, but rapid growth was not entered upon until 
the Sioux ceded a considerable area to the United States in 1851. 
The State Avas admitted JNIay 11, 1858, numbered as the tlnrty- 
second in the Union. 

38. Oregon, named from the Sj^anish for " Wild ]\Iarjoram," 
which is plentiful on the coast, was part of the land purchased 
in 1803 from Napoleon, while Jefferson was president, and 
Madison the minister to France. The Columbia river was 
partially explored in 1792, by Capt. Gray, in the ship 
"Columbia," from Boston, who reported in glowing terms as 
to the country, and the explorers Clark and Lewis, in 1804, 
were sent by President Jelferson along the Missouri to the 
head-waters, and thence to the Pacific by the Columbia river. 
The operations of the American Fur Company followed 
speedily upon the publication of their romantic adventures in 
a country hardly trodden by white men before their work com- 
menced, and in 1839 American emigration began. The north- 
Avest boundary settlement, in* 184G, aided the growth of popula- 
tion, and organization as a territory followed in two years. 
Liberal grants of land by Congress promoted colonization, and 
on February 14, 1859, the thirty-third State was admitted; 
Washington Territory having been organized, north of the 
Columbia river, in 1853. 

39. Kansas came into the Union through fire and blood, 
after the secession of that element Avhich had struggled so 
desperately to possess the soil and construct thereon a slave 
State. Clark and Lewis were the first white visitors in modern 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 411 

days, although there is a probaljility that both French and 
Spaniards were here in much earlier times. This also "vvas part 
of the land purchased from the Emperor Napoleon ; and the 
exi^lorations by Fremont, the Mexican War, the Mormon 
exodus, the Sante Fe trade, and the gold fever in California, led 
toward settlement, which was deferred under an erroneous im- 
pression that much of the land was a desert. Slavery had been 
introduced into the territory in deliance of the Missouri com- 
promise before the Kansas-iVel)raska bill was introduced by 
Douglas, and from the beginning Missouri was resolved upon 
the establishment of a slave State in Kansas. The war that was 
commenced so bitterly on that area was fought out on a wider 
field, to an end which none but enthusiasts of the John Brown 
type thought possible Avithin that generation. Kansas, organized 
by Act of Congress in 1854, was not admitted to the Union until 
President Buchanan had given place to his incomparably greater 
successor, Abraham Lincoln, on the 2Dth of January, 1861, 
thus closing the record before the war with thirty-four States 
enrolled. 

40. A comparative study of the States seceding, and of 
those that were resolved to uphold the Union, should have con- 
vinced an impartial observer on which side victory would rest, 
assuming a like eai'uestness on the question at issue, on either 
hand; but much, after all, depending upon careful and states- 
manlike management of afiairs, so that pul)lic opinion should 
not be shocked by violent action, which might have reacted 
against success. Wealth, population, philosophy, and right 
were on the side of the North ; but on the other were brave men, 
trained to statesmanship, to negotiation and to war, who had 
long controlled the resources of the Union, with the expectation 
of such a time supervening, and who had arranged the forces 
and supplies at that moment expressly to suit their aims, un- 
checked, if not absolutely assisted by President Buchanan. 
Abraham Lincoln was called to the work of a giant, and he 
was equal to the task. 



412 



HISTORY or DOMINION OF CANADA, 



CHAPTER XXXIV. 



THE AMERICAN CIVIL WAR. 



1. Lawless designs were so apparent when the clay ap- 
proached for inaugurating the new president, that it was found 
necessary for Mr. Lincohi to expedite his movements and arrive 
in Washington before the schemes of his enemies were ready for 
execution. The rumor that he travelled in disguise through the 
disaftected State is a popular fallacy ; he only passed through 
before he was expected, and that course of action better suited 
every good purpose. The inauguration of the president was a 
solemn event in the history of the Union, and the troops under 
Gen. Scott were no idle form in that pageant. None could tell 
in what quarter danger might even then be lurking, and there 
was a delusive confidence in the tone of the Confederate party. 
Officers in both arms of the service were resigning to join their 

fortunes with those of the seced- 
ing States. It Avas believed that 
the Union party was strong in the 
North, although circumstances 
kept them comparatively silent 
for a time, and the great ma- 
jority still hoped that war would 
not become inevitable. The 
government must carry with it 
public opinion, and that is not 
the vieAV of the foremost thinker, 
but the resultant from many 
minds : hence, the necessity for 
such cautious procedure as would 
keep from the skirts of the ad- 
ministration the stain of precipi- 
tating strife. If bloodshed must 
come, the responsibility should rest on the other side. That 
line of policy made the early days of President Lincoln's 
government seem hesitating and weak, "when truly he was 
pausing in wisdom and mercy, hoping against hope that some 
means might be devised to save the Union Avithout a baptism 
of lire. There was vigor on the other side, and every sound of 




ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 413 

preparation. Arms and arsenals had been seized and appro- 
priated, troops were on the march, recruits were coming in with 
enthusiasm, money and supplies were voted, and a vigorous 
prosecution of the war, if war it was to be, was freely promised 
by men who still retained their seats in Congress. 

2. The first gun in the era of strife was fired against. Fort 
Sumter on Friday morning, April 12, 18G1, and the Avar had 
commenced. The unarmed steamer, sent with supplies during 
the last days of President Buchanan, had been fired upon and 
driven back ; but the friend of the Confederacy saw no ground 
for continued action, so that there were only seventy men scantily 
provisioned in Fort Sumter, opposed to fully seven thousand, 
backed by the whole force of the seceding States. There had 
come into the presidential ofiice a friend to the Union, and he, 
after a careful survey of all the facts, concluded that the fort 
must be reinforced and supplied, peacefully if possible, but at 
any rate the duty must be accomplished. That fact being 
known, the commander of 
the confederate troops, 
Gen. Beauregard, demand- 
ed the surrender of the fort, 
and upon Maj. Anderson's 
refusal there was a cannon- 
ade, which lasted thirty-four 
hours, the barracks were 
set on fire by shot and shell, 
the garrison was exhausted 
in a fruitless contest, and 
capitulation with the honors 
of war ended the fiijht. The garrison saluted their flas: before 
they lowered it to the enemy, and the North was united as one 
man. Democrats and Ilepul^licans were now prepared for war ; 
the Rubicon was passed. Lincoln called for seventy-five thousand 
troops ; his old rival and quondam enemy, Douglas, urged upon 
him to increase the requisition, and defended his course before 
the Democratic party ; his dying words to his sons soon after 
were : " Obey the laws and support the constitution of the 
United States." Three hundred thousand volunteers answered 
the call for aid ; the flag, lowered at Fort Sumter, was raised 
all over the North, evoking the spirit of '76, and the best men 
were ready to march to the front. 

3. The South Avas inflamed hy the first victory, and looked 
forward with euthusiusm through the smoke and din of battle 




FORT SUMTEK. 



414 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

to a result which might justify the terrible arbitrament. Vir- 
ginia joined the Confederacy, closely followed by Arkansas, 
North Carolina, and Tennessee ; the armory at Harper's Ferry 
and the navy-yard at Norfolk w^ere seized by the Virginian 
troops, and liichmond was made the capital. Washington was 
in danger, and a regiment of Massachusetts militia, marching to 
aid in its defence, was attacked in Baltimore city, on the anni- 
versary of the battle of Lexington, a number of men being 
killed. The war had commenced in earnest. Virginia was the 
scene of operations, because the capital of the Union must be 
protected ; and Col. Elmer E. Ellsworth, with his Zouaves, 
occupying Alexandria, was shot at the very beginning of the 
conflict. Arlington Heights, opposite the capital, was seized by 
national troops on the 24th of May, 18G1. Fortress Monroe, at 
the entrance of the Chesapeake, was garrisoned under Gen. 
Butler, and soon afterwards an expedition was sent against Big 
Bethel, where the Confederates had fortifications. Several 
forces were despatched at midnight, June 9, 18G1, by Gen. 
Butler, to make the assault on the following morning ; but the 
different bodies mistook each other for enemies in the uncertain 
light, and the assault failed, after causing the United States a 
loss of one hundred men. The Confederate force, under Col. 
Magruder, immediately fell back to Yorktown. 

4. Union victories were rare in the first 3'ear of the Avar ; 
the troops were raw levies, enthusiastic but untrained ; and there 
is an apprenticeship necessary for officers and men before even 
the bravest can look unmoved upon the probability of instant 
death, leaving the care of those dearest and best loved to the 
sympathies of strangers. Western Virginia was loyal to the 
Union, but it Avas held by Confederate forces, and a series of 
engagements at Philippi, Rich Mouiatain, and Carrick's Ford, 
under the command of Gen. McClellan, Avon the whole State for 
the Union. The Confederates, under Wise and Floyd, tried to 
recover the lost ground ; but Rosecrans attacked the ex-Avar 
secretary at Carnifex Ferry, Gov. Wise did not give support 
to Floyd, and there Avas another defeat for the seceders. Gen. 
Leo tried to sustain the failing cause, l)ut his repulse at Cheat 
Mountain Avas not folloAvcd by any decisiA'^e gain for his side, 
and the Union remained master inV^irginia to the end of 18G1. 

5. On to Richmond Avas the cry of the inexi:)erienced public, 
and the battle of Bull Run, July 21, resulted from a desire to 
satisfy that impatient demand. Gen. McDowell commanded 
the army of the Potomac, and 'the opposing forces Avere each 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



415 




about thirty thousand. The Confederates were driven from the 
field in the beginning of the fight, but they were rallied by the 
example of JStone- 
wall Jackson, and a 
reinforcement from 
Winchester, coming 
up before the still 
continuing contest 
could be ended, 
caused a "panic" 
among the northern 
men, such as hap- 
pily never occurred 
again during the 
war. The Xorth 
was cast down, but 
not dismayed ; the 
war must be a trial 
of strength and of 

ni O r '1 1 D U r 1 ) O S e stonewall tackson at bull run. 

among men constitutionally unused to surrender, and an effort 
proportioned to the purpose must be made. Congress voted 
five huudred thousand men and live hundred million dollars for 
the service, and JNlcClellan was made commander of the army 
of the Potomac. His promotion to the command-in-chief fol- 
lowed shortly after. Col. Baker, senator from Oregon, one of 
the a1)lest and best men on the side of the Union, fell at Ball's 
Bluff, October 21, in an action in which a reconnoitriug party 
of two thousand was overwhelmed by superior numbers ; but a 
victor}' at Dranesville, after a spirited engagement, December 
20, restored the courage of the Federals, Avhen all around looked 
dark. 

6. Missouri remained neutral in spite of the attempts to 
carry a secession ordinance ; but the troops of both parties 
selected this ground for many battles. Gen. Lyon, with a small 
Federal force, broke up Camp Jackson, defeated an attempt on 
the Union arsenal at St. Louis, and on the 17th of June routed 
a Confederate force of two thousand five hundred men in 
an entrenched camp at Booneville, capturing guns, clothing, and 
camp equipage. Gen. Sigel, outnumbered by the combined 
forces of the Confederates under Jackson and Price, after a well- 
fought battle, Avas compelled to retire on Carthage and Sarcoxie, 
on the 5th of July, and Lyon, left unsupported, chose to attack 



416 IIISTOEY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

the armies of Price and jSItCulloch at Wilson's Creek, on the 
lOtli of August. He fell leading a bayonet charge in that un- 
successful action, and Col. Mulligan was subsequently compelled 
to surrrcnder Lexington. Gen. Fremont, assuming the com- 
mand, forced the Confederates under Price to retreat to Spring- 
tield ; but he was superseded by Hunter before a decisive battle 
could be fought. Gen. Halleck, who soon succeeded Hunter, 
continued the course commenced by Fremont, and Price re- 
treated to Arkansas. On the Gth of November Gen.* Grant, 
with four thousand troops, descended the Mississippi river, from 
Cairo, and on the following morning drove the Confederates 
from their camp at Belmont, after a prolonged engagement, and 
destroyed the camp with all its contents ; but strong reinforce- 
ments from Columbus, under Polk, coming to the rescue of the 
enemy. Grant was eventually driven back to his boats, without 
losing a gun, and carrying with him artillery captured during 
the assault ; thus the year ended favorably for the Union in 
Missouri. 

7. Coast and sea offered a field for operations, of which 
Jefferson Davis proposed to avail himself by issuing commis- 
sions to privateers, and in consequence the southern ports were 
blockaded. The Union navy had been scattered all around the 
world by the Buchanan administration, and of the fort^-two 
ships in commission there was but one efficient vessel on the 
northern coast. Before the end of 1861 the navy consisted of 
two hundred and four ships of war. The " Savannah" privateer 
was the first to sail under the Confederate flag, and she was cap- 
tured after making only one prize. The "Petrel" was sunk by 
the St. Lawrence, having mistaken a war-frigate for an un- 
armed merchant ship, and Captain Semmes sold the "Sumter" in 
Gibraltar Bay, to prevent her falling into northern hands. The 
forts at Hatteras Inlet, N. C, were captured by a joint attack 
of land and sea forces, and a similar combination carried Tybee 
Island, at the mouth of the Savannah, and Port Royal entrance, 
S.C., which became the depot of the Union fleet. 

8. Belligerent rights had been conceded by England and 
France to the Confederates, and the South, hoping for foreign 
aid, sent Commissioners Slidell and Mason to those courts. 
The British steamer "Trent" was boarded by Captain "Wilkes, of 
the " San Jacinto," and the commissioners captured ; but the gen- 
eral government disavowed the act, and the prisoners were set 
at liberty. France and Louis Xapoleon would have joined Eng- 
land in rendering aid to the Confederates ; but the English gov- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 417 

erument was held in check by public opinion, and it was desir- 
able that the sympathies of the British people should be carried 
with the North through the war. 

9. The end of 1861 showed a somewhat mixed result. The 
losses at Harper's Ferry and Norfolk were material, but they 
were not defeats for northern arms, such as they had sustained 
at Bull Kun and Wilson's Creek. There had been reverses 
also at Big Bethel, Lexington, and Ball's Blutf. Carthage, not 
a defeat, had compelled a retrograde movement, and the brill- 
iant affair at Belmont was not entirely a success ; still, on the 
whole, there were compensations. Northern men were becom- 
ing trained to war, and that was everything in the great result. 
Fort Pickens, near Pensacola, had been saved to the Union by 
a wise concentration of force, and Fort Monroe, on Old Point 
Comfort, Va., was also in Federal hands, as also Ilatteras Inlet 
and Port Eoyal. Missouri, Maryland, and West Virginia had 
been rescued from the secessionists, and besides winning the 
battles of Philippi, Rich Mountain, Boone ville, Carrick's Ford, 
Cheat Mountain, Carnifex Ferry, and Dranesville, the whole 
South had l)een thrown into a state ofi siege, shut in by armies 
on land, and by a formidable blockade upon the coast. 

10. Looking Ahead. The force voted by Congress — 
half a million of men — had been raised to meet the Confeder- 
ate force of three hundred and fifty thousand. The disparity 
was not overpowering, but it gave an earnest of the inexhaust- 
ible power, back of the Union half million, which could be 
drawn upon as a reserve force to the bitter end. The campaign 
on the Union side began with three purposes : opening the Mis- 
sissippi, completely closing all southern ports, and capturing 
Richmond, the capital of the Confederacy. Fort Henry and 
Fort Donclson, on the Tennessee and Cumberland rivers, must 
be captured, and impregnable Columbus opened to northern 
troops ; so that there was no child's play before them. Cum- 
berland Gap, Mill Spring, and Bowling Green, were also strong 
positions in Confederate hands, and it was hoped that if the 
Tennessee river could be carried there would be valuable re- 
sults before the commencement of 1862. 

11. On the Tennessee. Gen. Grant and Com. Foote, 
with the army and gun-boats, moved from Cairo, February 2, 
and on the 6tli the combined attack was to be made on Fort 
Henry ; but before the army could come up the fort surren- 
dered, and the troops driven out by the bombardment escaped 
to Fort Donelson, increasing its defence by three thousand 



418 IIISTOKY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

men. The general in command and seventy men were taken 
with the works. Grant moved ujion Fort Donelson on the 
12th, having" waited until the gun-boats had been repaired. The 
force to be assailed was very strong, having been reinforced by 
the Confederate Generals Pillow, liuckner, and Floyd, and the 
battle lasted three days. Fighting began on the 13th, when, 
after a vigorous cannonading, an assault was made, and repulsed. 
On the 14tli reinforcements to the number often thousand men 
joined Grant, and, the gun-boats having come up, the battle was 
renewed ; l)ut before the afternoon closed Com. Foote was 
compelled to retire with the gun-boats, and the lines of invest- 
ment by land were drawn closer. On the 15th the Confederate 
generals tried to cut their way through Grant's force, but their 
aim had been divined and they were driven back with consider- 
able loss. An advance along the whole line forced the defend- 
ers back within their works, with no alternative but surrender. 
Pillow and Floyd made their escape, and the surrender de- 
volved upon Buckner. Grant was ready on the 16th for a 
general attack, but with early dawn came a messenger asking 
for an armistice and terms of capitulation. The reply was 
worthy of Grant : " No terms but unconditional surrender can 
be accepted. I propose to move upon your works at once." 
The surrender was made on those conditions, and the fort, with 
ten thousand prisoners, forty-eight guns, and large quantities 
of ammunition, fell into Federal hands February IG. The con- 
sequence was, as had been anticipated, that Bowling Green and 
Columbus were abandoned l)y the Confederates and Buell took 
possession of Nashville. Corinth was the next rally ing-point 
of the Confederates, and Gens. Johnson and Beauregard con- 
centrated their strength at that point, the railroad centre of 
Mississippi and Tennessee. Grant, in command, ascended to 
Pittsburg Landing, and Buell was to come up with reinforce- 
ments. The Memphis and Charleston Railroad was to be se- 
cured by northern forces, and the Confederates saw the purpose 
to be important. 

12. Pittsburg Landing. Giant, who had won the first 
great success of the war, was now major-general, but subordi- 
nate to Halleck, and he was commanded not to attack Corinth. 
He encamped at Shiloh with thirty-eight thousand men, and 
waited for Buell. Five thousand of his troops were beyond 
supporting distance, when the Confederates, fifty thousand 
strong, advanced from Corinth to crush Grant before he could 
procure reinforcements. The slaughter was terrible, and the 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 419 

national forces slowly retired to the river, where they were held 
by Grant until darlt, when Buell's force began to arrive. The 
guns were worked all night upon the Confederate camp, and 
early on the following day Grant, with the combined forces, 
drove the Confederates back to Corinth. Johnson was slain, 
and Beauregard returned with a loss of eleven thousand men. 
The loss on the northern side had been very severe, but the 
ground fought over was in their hands, and, although the sur- 
prise had been a severe shock, the jwestige of victory remained 
with their forces. The evacuation of Corinth and its possession 
by Halleck, on the 30th of May, was a consequence of the des- 
perate struggle on the Gth and 7th of April, as no fighting had 
since that time occurred. 

13. Results of Shiloh. When the Confederates aban- 
doned Columbus, they occupied Island No. 10, in the Missis- 
sippi, where they were bombarded for three weeks by Com. 
Foote ; but the surrender of the force, seven thousand strong, 
on the day of the victory at Shiloh, Avas compelled by the action 
of Gen. Pope. The troops of the South had been concentrated 
at Corinth, and New Orleans was left almost unprotected. The 
Confederate iron-clad fleet was defeated on the river by the 
Union gun-boats, May 10. Fort Pillow fell immediately 
after Corinth, the Memphis and Charleston Railroad was se- 
cured, Memphis was taken, and the Confederate flotilla in front 
of Memphis destroyed by northern gun-boats ; and indeed Ken- 
tucky and all western Tennessee were in possession of the 
North. From Memphis almost to Chattanooga the Federal line 
was unbroken, and Buell was on the advance to the point last- 
named. Bragg, Price, and Van Dorn, the Confederate gen- 
erals, at Chattanooga, luka, and Holly Springs, were under an 
imperative necessity to break the Union line or retreat. They 
chose the former alternative. 

14. Battle at Perryville. Gen. Bragg advanced with 
fifty thousand men, and Buell retired to Nashville, where, having 
ascertained that his opponent meant to reach Louisville, he made 
a forced march of three hundred miles to cut ofi" Gen. Bragg, 
beating him l)y just one day. Buell, being reinforced, had 
now one hundred thousand men under his command. Grant 
had sent every veteran that could be spared, and Bragg slowly 
retreated to Perryville, where a desperate fight occurred on the 
8th of October. Bragg drew off" during the night succeeding 
the battle, carrying a vast quantity of phnider which had been 
gathered on his march, and Gen. Buell was superseded by 



420 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

Eosecrans on the last day of October. The retreat from Ken- 
tucky was now inevitable. 

15. luKA AND Corinth. "While Grant was weakened by 
the absence of the men sent to assist Buell, Price and Van 
Dorn meditated the recapture of Corinth. Grant also had a 
design, and he moved upon luka September 19, hoping to cap- 
ture Price ; but Rosecrans did not carry out his instructions, 
and Price escaped, and to that extent the victory was incom- 
plete ; but the Confederates lost nearly one thousand five hun- 
dred men. The Confederate generals then carried out their 
scheme, and made a combined assault on Corinth with forty 
thousand men. Grant strengthened the fortifications and di- 
rected the defence which resulted in another Confederate defeat 
on the 3d and 4th of October, followed up by the battle of the 
Hatchie on the 5th, the losses of the enemy being more than 
six thousand men. 

16. Eosecrans at Murfreesboro'. Before abandoning 
Kentucky, Bragg determined upon a final effort, and advanced 
with sixty thousand men to Murfreesboro', where he was met 
by Eosecrans December 31. The Confederate right, strength- 
ened for the purpose, attacked the Union right, which had been 
weakened to carry out a similar project of assaults by Eose- 
crans ; and the assault would have been fatal but for the courage 
of Gen. Sheridan, who. held his men together until Eosecrans 
could reform his order of battle. The Confederates advanced 
four times after the first assault, but Avere defeated with great 
slaughter. On the 2d of January, 1863, Bragg renewed the 
battle^P^ut, after one of the most sanguinary contests of the war, 
one-fourth of the united forces being destroyed in the two days' 
fighting, he was compelled to retreat and to stand only on the 
defensive. Kentucky was beyond recovery, and the way was 
open for farther advances on Chattanooga. 

17. Moving AGAINST ViCKSBURG. Major-Gen. Grant moved 
into Mississippi on the 2d of November, to threaten Vicksburg 
in the rear with thirty thousand men, while Sherman attacked 
the place by the river with forty thousand, descending from 
Memphis. Grant had reached Oxford, fifty miles in advance, 
when Col. Murphy surrendered Holly Springs to Gen. Van 
Dorn's cavalry. Murphy was dismissed from the army for his 
incompetency, or worse ; but the campaign had to be aban- 
doned. Sherman, unaware of this change, made his attack at 
Chickasaw Bayou, but was defeated with great loss. Arkansas 
Post was captured by Sherman on the 11th of January, 1863, 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 421 

and the campaign of 1862, on the Mississippi, was closed by 
that act. Missouri was still the scene of operations, but Gen. 
Curtis drove Gen. Price into Arkansas in February, 1863, and 
when Van Dorn, with a command of twenty thousand, at- 
tempted to recover the lost ground, he was totally defeated at 
Pea Eidgc, March 7,8, and no ftirther important battles were 
fought in Missouri. 

18. Farragut AT New Orleans. The southern armies 
being concentrated at Corinth, left New Orleans an easy prey to 
northern arms ; but the defences on the sea-front ^vcre tremen- 
dous. As soon as the capture was resolved upon. Commodore 
Farragut was nominated to the command. His preparations and 
his orders for the attack were worthy of the success that was 
achieved ; he left nothing to accident, and no mishap mai-red 
his victory. His fleet of forty-four vessels carried eight thou- 
sand men, under Gen. Butler. The defences at the mouth of 
the river were bomljardcd for some days, but at length it was 
concluded to run in past the forts and come to close quarters 
with the city. The daring movement was eminently successful. 
Shot, shell, and fire-rafts, failed to destroy the Union fleet, and 
the Confederate force of thirteen armed steamers, the steam 
battery " Louisiana," the Ram " Manassas," and the forts at short 
range, were all in turn vanquished, and twelve of the flotilla 
destroyed. The city was then defenceless under the Union 
guns, and the forts, menaced from the rear, surrendered, 
Th^s New Orleans was reached and conquered through an array 
of defences which, to that day, had been deemed invincible. 
The commodore proceeded up the river in the summer of 1862, 
ran the Vicksburg batteries, passing through the awfid fire of 
the forts at Port Hudson, and joined Flag, Officer Porter in 
command of the fleet on the Upper Mississippi, assisting in 
the capture of Port Hudson, as he had already taken Baton 
Rouge and Natchez. He well deserved the thanks and promo- 
tion bestowed upon him by Congress. Porter was also made a 
rear-admiral. 

19. Capture of Roanoke. Gen. Burnside rendered an 
important service to the Union cause in the capture of Roanoke, 
the key to the defences of Norfolk, as it made the blockade of 
the South more than ever effective. This island was well said 
to unlock ''two sounds, eight rivers, and four railroads." The 
forts at Roanoke were captured, the fleet annihilated, Newbern, 
Elizabeth City, and Macon were taken, so that Beaufort Harbor 
and the whole coast of North Carolina fell into northern hands. 




422 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

Port Royal, having been captured in 1861, was now a base of 
operations against Florida and Georgia, and during this cam- 
paign Fernandina, Fort Clinch, Jacksonville, Darien, St. Au- 
gustine, and Fort Pulaski were taken in succession. The last- 
named capture closed the port of Savannah ; and every city on 
the Atlantic coast except Mobile, Charleston, and Savannah was 
held by northern troops. 

20. "Merrimac" and "Monitor." The iron-clad " Mer- 

rimac," really named " Virginia," steamed into Hampton Roads 

March 8, at noon, steering 

" land " sloop of war, in whose 

side she made a hole large 
enough to admit a man. The 
^^ sloop sank at once with all 
THB MONITOR. on board, the men working 

their guns as they went 
down, with colors flying. The "Congress" frigate was run 
aground to save her from the same fate, but she was compelled 
to surrender to this irresistible power. There was no longer a 
place on the coast where wooden vessels could be safe against 
such an enemy, and the "Merrimac," sure of victory, reserved 
the feast of destruction until the next day. The Confederates 
were full of joyous auguries. No blockade was possible while 
the "Merrimac" kept afloat. Just then the "Monitor," built 
by Ericsson, arrived in Chesapeake Bay, with the revolving 
turret, armed for attack, and a form almost invulnerable. The 
occasisip was critical. Should she answer the expectations of 
her friends the Confederacy might be broken ; but, otherwise, 
who could foresee the result? Her tonnage was a bagatelle 
against that of the "Virginia," — nine hundred tons, compared 
with five thousand. Ready for service in the Hampton Roads, 
she waited the arrival of the monster from whose sides and 
roof the shot of the " Cumberland " had rolled off" harmlessly as 
hail from a cliff". The morning brought the destroyer, and the 
" Minnesota " steam frigate was chosen as the first victim ; but 
from under the lee of that ship came the "Monitor," delivering 
shot one hundred and sixty-two pounds in weight ; masses of 
iron whose impact was destruction. The "Minnesota" was 
spared until the little termagant could be silenced. Shot failed 
to affect her, she must be run down ; and five times the experi- 
ment was tried ; but the " Monitor " came from imder the 
" Virginia's " prow untouched. The world had never witnessed 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 423 

a duel so strange ; but the victory was with the Union ; as the 
" Virginia " gave up the contest, and steamed back into Nor- 
folk, leaving the "Monitor" substantially unharmed. Erics- 
son's ship of iron and white oak was worth the ransom of four 
million slaves. Perhaps the "Monitor" even saved the Re- 
public. 

22. YoEKTOAVN Besieged. Gen. McClellan, landing on 
the 8th of April at Fortress JNIonroe with one hundred thousand 
men, commenced the Peninsula campaign by advancing to 
Yorktown, where Gen. Magruder, with five thousand, held 
him at bay for one month, until heavy siege-guns could be pro- 
cured from Washington, and, when all was ready for a terrible 
beginning, Magruder gave up his untenable position, where 
many of the guns were found to be wooden substitutes, painted 
in mockery. It would have been an ill wind for Magruder that 
blew him in.to McClellan's hands at that time. 

23. Battle OF Williamsburg. Gen. Joseph E. Johnston, 
posted at llichmond, having sent reinforcements to the Confed- 
erate rear-guard in the forts at Williamsburg, Gen. Hooker was 
alforded an opportunity for a battle, as the retreating troops 
determined to make their stand at this point. Nine hours the 
battle raged, but the assaulting party being reinforced. Gen. 
Hooker carried the works by storm, and pursuit continued 
until the fugitives were within seven miles of Richmond. 
The city would probably have fallen an easy prey at that time. 

23. Confederate Panic. The Conarress sittinij in Rich- 
mond hastily adjourned, and an attack was hourly expected in 
the capital, where all was hurry and confusion ; but McClellan 
had learned that there was a force at Hanover Court-House 
which might endanger his base of supplies, and the time passed 
for operations. Hanover Court-House was captured May 27, 
1862, and the army waited for Gen. McDowell; but the junc- 
tion was rendered impossible by other movements. 

24. Stonewall Jackson was hurled towards AVashington, not 
with the expectation that an ojiportunity for an assault upon the 
national capital would arise, but for the purpose of relieving 
Richmond. His action in the Shenandoah valley, concentrating 
upon himself the attention of a force of seventy thousand men, 
yet eluding pursuit and being always on hand to deliver telling 
strokes against the Union forces, provoked admiration among 
those who deprecated the cause to which his abilities were ded- 
icated. The Union troops, under Gen. Banks, marching thirty- 
five miles in one day, crossed the Potomac, as a necessary 



424 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

movement under the circumstances. The president topk mili- 
tary possession of all the railroads, and consternation was gen- 
eral in Washington. The northern States were called upon to 
send militia to defend the city, and three generals — Fremont, 
Banks, and McDowell — were commanded to make Jackson 
their prisoner ; but it was as dangerous an operation as grasp- 
ing an electric eel, and apparently impossible. He dashed 
through every obstacle in his retreat, burning the bridges by 
which he passed ; and when Fremont attacked him at Cross 
Kcj's, June 8, he fouglit from nine in the morning until night, 
and then continued his retreat in the darkness. At Port Jack- 
son, on the 9th, he engaged and defeated Gen. Shields, cap- 
turing seven guns, and returning to his starting-point with 
nearly three thousand prisoners and over nine thousand stand 
of captured arms. These exploits, with fifteen thousand men, 
diverted attention from Richmond, and prevented a junction 
between McDowell and McClellau. 

25. McClellan at Fair Oaks. The general had pushed 
his left wing across the Chickahominy, just when a storm had 
changed the creek into a torrent, and the Confederate com- 
mander in Richmond came down upon a semi-detached force 
with terrible eiicct, sAveeping all before him for a time ; but 
Gen. Sumner, by a brilliant movement, saved the fortune of 
the day, and, when night fell, the Confederate leader, Johnston, 
was severely wounded, so that the command fell into less able 
hands the next day. June 1 saw the Confederates driven back 
into Richmond, with tremendous losses of men and arms, and 
the pursuers followed them to within five miles of that city ; 
but, once more. Gen. McClellan did not see his way to make 
one of those bold strokes which are possible pnly to military 
genius. 

26. Gen. Lee now took command of the Confederate army, 
but, in consequence of the influence exerted by his political 
chief, the supreme control of military operations was not vested 
in him, and the forces were scattered over a wide ranije of 
territory, in services Avhich did not permit of continuous sup- 
port. He was much loved by his troops ; an able defensive 
soldier, but not a good disciplinarian, nor a very successful 
general, as a rule, save in defence. His knowledge of the art 
of war was well-nigh perfect, but he seemed to lack first-class 
capacity to mass his troops and direct their operations in the 
field. Perhaps there was not another man in the Confederacy 
who could, with the same means, have made a defence so 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



425 




GENERAL ROBERT E. EEE. 



brilliant as that Avhich Avill perpetuate his ftimo in connec- 
tion with the name of Eichmontl. He would have abaudoned 
Eichmond at a much earlier date, but that he was overruled 
by the Confederate government in 
that, as in many other particulars, 
and the intellectual merit of his 
work is enhanced by the fact that 
he was laboring much of his time 
under difficulties all l)ut insuper- 
able. The appointment of Leo to the 
Confederate command was speedily 
followed by a severe check to the 
Union arms under McClellan. That 
officer a]iproached Richmond once 
more. Hooker's pickets were in 
sight of its steeples when Gen. 
Stuart, on the 12th of June, made 
a movement Avith cavalry round the 
Union forces, burning supplies along 
the roads most important for northern purposes, and re- 
turned untouched. Stonewall Jackson threatened Hanover 
Court-House and the Union White-House communications, so 
Hooker was called off from the advance, and a retreat to the 
James river commenced on the 26th of June. 

27. Confederate aggressions began l)y an attack on the 
Union right at Mechanicsville, at dawn of day on the 2r)th, 
which was repplsed, and the Federal troops fell back to Gaines' 
mill, where Porter held the bridges across the Chickahominy, 
until darkness shrouded the Union movements ; the retreat, 
hotly contested, going on all the time. As soon as the Federal 
baggage-train had crossed, the bridges Avere burned, and the 
retrograde movement continued all night. Similar operations, 
the localities only being changed, continued for seven days and 
nights. The retreat was an act of consummate generalship on 
the part of McClellan ; but Leo had discovered his aim, and 
troops Avere throAvn forward by all roads to intersect his line of 
march. On the 29th, at Savage's station, Magruder Avas on the 
flank ; but, as before, the position Avas held until night, Avhcn 
the retreat Avas resumed. On the 30th Longstreet and Hill 
tried to cut the Union lines at Frazier's Farm, but Avere l)eaten 
off, and that night the northern forces concentrated at Malvern, 
on a position faA^orable for defence, Avhere the last battle of this 
series was fought. Batteries, tier aboA^e tier, on the sloping 



426 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

sides of the plateau, told the Confederates, on the morning of 
July 1, that the retreating Army of the Potomac was ready 
for action. Really, the brave fellows were reduced to the last 
pitch of exhaustion by the harassing work of the preceding 
days and nights, but none would have recognized that fact in 
the proceedings of the day. Naval support on the James river 
protected the left ; but, nothing daunted, the Confederates hoped 
to carry the position and completely destroy JNIcClellan's power. 
The repulse sustained by Lee's array at this point was tre- 
mendous, and the Union army proceeded to Harrison's Landing 
without farther molestation afterwards. But the effect of the 
Confederate movements under Lee, taken as a whole, gave 
great confidence to the secessionists. Twenty thousand men 
lost at Malvern Hill was a small price to pay for a succession of 
victories up to that point, Avhich had driven McClellan from 
under the works at Richmond, taken ten thousand prisoners, 
destroyed and secured stores of enormous value, demoralized 
an army of one hundred thousand, or nearly that number, and 
only left them when naval forces came to the rescue. McClel- 
lan's loss in killed and wounded was terrific ; the North was 
depressed beyond measure, and the president made a fresh 
levy of three hundred thousand men. 

28. Pope's record on the Rapidan, commanding the troops 
intended to defend Washington, was the next object of atten- 
tion. The Confederates, no longer fighting for their own capital, 
now threatened the North, and McClellan was subordinated to 
Gen. Pope, being ordered to bring his army to Acquia Creek. 
Lee determined to crush Pope before relief could arrive, and, 
having detailed Jackson to flank him, compelled that general 
to fight the whole force of the Confederacy under his command, 
on the old battle-ground of Manassas, or Bull Run. The actions 
of August 29th and 80th cost the JS^orth a terrible discomfiture, 
in which the loss of thirty guns and a vast quantity of military 
stores, very valuable to the South, formed the smallest items in 
the account. The Army of the Potomac, all but demolished by 
this new loss of thirty thousand men, and the prestige of utter 
rout, found safety in the fortifications of Washington. 

29. McClellan resumed command of the army, such as it 
had become under Pope, and, after reorganizing the force, he 
followed Gen. Lee into Maryland. Having ascertained that 
Lee had despatched Stonewall Jackson with twenty-five thou- 
sand men to capture Harper's Ferry, defended by Col. Mills, 
with only eleven thousand men, McClellan overtook the Con- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 427 

federate main body at South IMountain and forced the battle of 
Antietam, on the 17th day of September. The battle might 
have been fought on the IGth, but McClellan lost twenty-four 
hours, and that allowed Jackson to return with part of his com- 
mand before the engagement came to an end. But for that de- 
lay Lee would have been crushed, or at any rate that was the 
general impression in the North. At dawn on the 17th Hooker 
fell upon the Confederate left, Burnside waiting a favorable 
moment to carry the bridge and attack the right. Hooker was 
wounded and his attack repulsed ; but, both sides being rein- 
forced, the battle continued until night, the advantage at the 
close of the engagement being with Lee, who retired into 
Virginia shortly afterwards, and was not followed by McClellan 
mitil after a delay of six weeks. Lee had been compelled to 
abandon his scheme of invasion, Washington w^as safe, and the 
battle of Antietam had thus the results of a victory. 

30. Emancipation of Slaves. President Lincoln, whose 
mind had long pondered the question of slavery as an aboli- 
tionist, and the policy of emancipation as a statesman, issued 
his famous proclamation on the 2 2d of September ; but the 
actual operation of its conditional clauses only commenced when 
the supplementary document followed, on January 1, 1863. 
The original draft had l)een made in July, but the president had 
waited for some favorable moment to publish his intention, when 
it should not appear to have been forced out of him by reverses. 
The declaration was opportune, as it gave fresh courage to many 
who had been disheartened by what had seemed the w^ant of 
purpose in a w^ar arising out of slavery. The South was already 
so bitter that nothing could increase its animosity against the 
North, consequently there was no reason for farther delay ; still 
it was important w^ith many in the North to make it evident 
that emancipation was necessary as a w'ar measure. 

31. McClellan Superseded. Public opinion had long 
been wavering as to McClellan ; but the campaign of 1862 was 
fatal to his popularity, and he was superseded by Gen. Burn- 
side, November 7th, who advanced to Fredericksburg on the 
17th, crossing the Rappahannock on pontoon bridges, and found 
Lee ready to make a masterly defence of his position in the 
bloody conflict of December 13. The position to be assailed 
on the 13th of December could have been taken with ease, Avhen 
Gen. Sumner asked Burnside for orders to capture the place on 
the night of November 17 ; but the nesvly appointed commander 
seemed resolved that he would prove his ability to move so 



428 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

large an army, of which he had ah^eady publicly spoken, and he 
waited until the force of one regiment of cavalry had been 
changed to the entire Confederate army under Lee in person. 
The battle was a series of blunders on the northern side, in 
which orders, half understood, were executed or attempted with 
useless heroism, and the slaughter under the stone wall at 
Marye's Hill, defended by Gen. Longstreet, was an entirely 
fruitless massacre of brave men before an impassable obstacle. 
Twelve thousand men fell, and half of that number, at Marye's 
Hill, dj'ing like heroes, but without result, except that Burnside's 
estimate of his own powers had been fully sustained, and eight 
days later he was relieved from the command. 

32. Results of the Campaign. The victories of the South 
had been w^on almost entirely against the Army of the Potomac, 
and it was evident, at almost every movement, that the Union 
forces were outgeneralled by superior men, with whom they had 
been associated at West Point, until every minutia of their 
minds had been read. The victories of Stonewall Jackson and 
of Lee in the Peninsular campaign, and against Pope at Ma- 
nassas, followed by Cedar Mountain, Chickasaw Bluff, and 
Fredericksburg, almost ended the record ; as the operations of 
Bragg in Kentucky had been considerably checkered by re- 
verses. The victories of the North had still been such as to 
counteract all these draAvbacks, and to prove that there were on 
the Union side commanders who knew how to move masses of 
men with deadly celerity upon points of attack, and to win 
victories by land and sea. Forts Henry, Donelson, Pulaski, 
Macon, Jackson, St. Philip, and Island No. 10, taken by the 
Federal army, proved the bravery of northern troojjs and the 
capacity with which they were directed in the opening of the 
Mississippi early in the year. The same river opened to Vicks- 
burg, the capture of New Orleans, Eoanoke Island, Newbern, 
Yorktown, Norfolk, and Memphis, the battles of Pea Ridge, 
Williamsburg, Fair Oaks, South Mountain, Antietam, luka, 
Corinth, and Murfreesboro', the destruction of the flotilla before 
New Orleans, and the defeat of the "Merrimac" by the 
" Monitor," made a good showing for the work of the year ; but 
most men saw that the command of the Union resources in the 
West and along the coast had been much more conducive to glory 
and success than that which, under several heads, had sacrificed 
the North in Virginia. 

33. Indian difficulties came in to increase northern compli- 
cations during 1862. The Sioux, unable to procure their pay- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 429 

ments from Indian traders, committed horrible massacres in 
Dacotah, Iowa, and Minnesota, driving thousands from their 
home, and murdering about seven hundred whites. Colonel 
Sibley pursued the savages for one month, took five hundred 
captives, and thirty-nine were hanged at Mankato, after Christ- 
mas, 1862, thereby ending the outbreak. 

34. The campaign of 1863 opened with the emancipation of 
the slaves ; they were no longer merely " contrabands of war ; " 
they were free within the boundaries of the Union ; and there 
were seven hundred thousand men in arms to carry out that 
policy. Already the Confederates were being destroyed by 
the mere continuance of the Avar, as their numbers in the field 
were hardly three hundred and fifty thousand. The occupation 
of Tennessee was now added to the former plans of action. 

35. Capture of Vicksburg. Grant, in command of all 
the troops in the Mississippi Valley, in January, 1863, took a 
position in front of Vicksburg, and determined to carry the 
place. Some months were spent in unceasing devices in the 
North, before the general concluded to pass the river below 
Vicksburg, in April. The gunboats ran the batteries, and the 
troops were crossed on the last day of the month. Pemberton, 
not yet shut up in Vicksburg, was in the field with fifty-two 
thousand men, and was on the point of being reinforced by 
Johnston, who had preceded Lee in the command at Richmond. 
Grant's command was only forty-three thousand, therefore it 
was important that the Confederates should be taken in detail. 
Pushing himself between the two armies he, on the 1st of May, 
defeated part of Pemberton's command at Port Gibson ; on the 
12th he destroyed a force coming from Jackson, and on the 
14th scattered Johnston's army, capturing Jackson at the same 
time. Two days later he routed Pemberton's entire force at 
Champion's Hill, and on the 17th, having overtaken him in 
pursuit, he inflicted upon him another defeat at Black-river 
Bridge, driving him into Vicksburg the following day. Assaults 
failing to carry the city on the 19th and 22d, siege-work began 
on the 23d, and the 4th of July was signalized by the surrender 
of Vicksburg, with thirty-one thousand men and one hundred 
and seventy-two cannon, besides other stores. The Confeder- 
ate loss in that campaign was forty thousand prisoners, and 
about twenty thousand killed, wounded, missing, and deaths by 
disease. Thus the great river was open to the sea, and the 
Mississij)pi Valley saw no more heavy fighting. The Union 
loss altogether was under nine thousand men, in winning five 



430 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

battles and capturing two cities, Ijesides which th6 fall of Port 
Hudson, which had resisted Gen. Banks for many weeks, fol- 
lowed immediately on the surrender of Vicksburg, and the 
Confederacy was completely severed. 

36. Chickamauga. The energy displayed by Grant was 
not emulated by Rosecrans in Tennessee, and it was not long 
before the voice of the people called the pacificator of the 
Mississippi Valley to higher commands. He was forthwith 
made a major-general in the regular army. Rosecrans made 
no movement, after Murfreesboro, until June, when he 
marched against Bragg, Avith sixty thousand men, and com- 
pelled that general to abandon Chattanooga, Se23tember 8, to 
preserve his communications. Assuming Bragg to be in full 
retreat, Rosecrans followed precipitately, and was nearly de- 
stroyed by the sudden movements of Bragg, near Chickamauga, 
when the pursuing force was scattered along a line of about 
forty miles. The battle lasted two days, September 19 and 
20. The iirst day saw no advantage gained by either side, 
but, about noon on the 20th, Longstreet broke the Federal line 
and swept away the centre and right, R-osecrans being among 
the fugitives. Gen. Thomas, with the left, held the field 
against the entire Confederate army until night, when he re- 
tired to Chattanooga, taking some prisoners as he went. The 
army of the Union was shut up, and Bragg cut oflf all communica- 
tions, threatening the garrison with famine. Thomas was 
afterwards known as "The Rock of Chickamauga." 

37. Chattanooga was closely beleaguered when Grant's com- 
mand was extended to cover that region, October 16. One 
week from that date he was on the spot, and on the 27th the 
battle of Lookout Valley relieved the army of the Cumberland. 
There was no Rosecrans now to dally with danger. Hooker 
came from the Potomac by rail, with two corps, twenty-five 
thousand men, and Sherman dashed into the scene of glory by 
forced marches from luka. November 23, 24, and 25 
saw Bragg defeated in the battle of Chattanooga, driven from 
positions supposed to be impregnable, losing five thousand 
prisoners in the open field, and forty pieces of artillery. The 
Confederates reported two thousand five hundred men killed 
and wounded. Orchard Knob was seized by Gen. Thomas on 
the 23d, and on the 24th Lookout Mountain was carried in a 
grand charge by Hooker, who the next morning advanced on 
the south of Missionary Ridge. Sherman disturbed the equa- 
nimity of Bragg by his operations on the northern fiank, and the 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 431 

centre was weakened to resist him. Grant, at Orchard Knob, 
saw his opportunity, and sent Thomas to carry the rifle-pits at 
the foot of the ridge ; but his men, forgetting all limitations, 
bettered the instruction by sweeping up the ridge with headlong 
impetuosity. A charge along the whole line was the crowning 
movement of the day. Bragg's army was annihilated, his own 
guns were turned upon him ; there was no longer a hostile army 
west of the Alleghanies, and Georgia was open to northern 
arms, with Virginia, the Carolinas, and the complete control of 
East Tennessee. Bragg resigned his command immediately 
afterwards, and Grant became the idol of the North. 

38. Knoxville, Tenn., was now the abiding-place of Gen. 
Burnside, who, after his misfortunes in command of the Army 
of the Potomac, had achieved many successes in this region, 
but had been shut up in Knoxville, Sept. 17, by Longstreet, 
with a superior force. Immediately after Chattanooga, the 
commander sent Sherman to relieve Burnside, by forced 
marches, with barefoot troops, over terrible roads, a distance of 
one hundred miles. Longstreet made his grand assault Nov. 
29, hoping to subdue Burnside before aid could reach him ; but 
that general knew how to tight to the last man, and the attack 
was heroically defeated. The relief under Sherman came on 
the 4th of December, and Longstreet retreated in good order. 

39. General Hooker succeeded Burnside in command, after 
Fredericksburg, in January, and ujDon the departure of Long- 
street, who was sent into Tennessee to help Bragg, Hooker de- 
termined upon an advance with al)out one hundred thousand 
men, to attack Lee, who had now only al)out sixty thousand 
within reach. Sedgwick was left before Fredericksburg, and 
Hooker pushed forward to Chancellorsville, taking up a very 
strong position, from which Lee was unable to dislodge him. 
The hght continued two days, — May 2 and 3, — but on the 
second day Hooker, having been stunned by a cannon-ball, 
which struck a post against which he was leaning, could not 
direct the operations of his side. A terrible attack in the rear 
of the force by Stonewall Jackson, 'while Lee made nn assault 
in front, partially demoralized the army ; but the great body 
of the forces held their ground. The redoubtable Stonewall 
Jackson fell in this battle, being shot by mistake by one of his 
own men, as is believed ; and the loss of such an officer was 
worse than the destruction of a regiment for the Confederate 
cause. Sedgwick crossed the Rappahannock, carried Fred- 
ericksburg by assault, and attacked the rear of Lee's army ; but 



432 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

that officer, concentrating his force upon Sedgwick, drove him 
back across the river, and Hooker, having lost eighteen thou- 
sand men, recrossed the Kappahannock. The Confederates lost 
about thirteen thousand. Sedgwick's movements were well 
executed, but the accident to Hooker prevented the designs 
originally formed from being carried into execution. 

40. Philadelphia and New York were now the objective 
points with Gen. Lee, and he was confident that he could dic- 
tate terms of peace in the heart of the northern States. The 
successes at Vicksburg and in that neighborhood were yet in 
the future, and the South made a desperate effort to equip an 
army superior to anytliing ever yet attempted by the secession- 
ists. Hooker, who was in command of the Federal army when 
Lee moved down the valley of the Shenandoah and crossed 
the Potomac, advancing to Chambers! )urg, continued on the 
same line along Blue Kidge and South Mountains. Fearing 
some movement that would endanger his communications, Lee 
turned east, to threaten Baltimore. Hooker continued in com- 
mand imtil the army arrived in Frederick City, when, in con- 
sequence of his demands as to the disposition of troops not 
being complied with, he resigned, and the command devolved 
upon Gen. Meade. Congress afterwards gave a vote of thanks 
to Gen. Hooker for his services in averting the blow which 
might have been inflicted upon the capital by the Confederate 
forces under Lee. 

41. Gettysburg. Gen. Meade only assumed the com- 
mand of the Army of the Potomac, June 28, and the great 
battle commenced on the 1st of July, being continued for two 
days afterwards. The plans made for the campaign by Hooker 
were eminently judicious, and in part his movements were 
answerable for the results at Gettysl)urg. There was no inten- 
tion on either side to fight at that point, but an accidental 
encounter between cavalry corps, on the 30th of June, led to 
another assault of a similar character at Willoughl)y's Run, 
near Gettysburg, July 1st, when Gen. Buford, with four thou- 
sand horse, held the ground against thirty thousaud men of all 
arms ; and so, by the will of God, the great battle was fought 
on the place allotted. Other forces rallied to the support of 
both sides, and the first day ended with some slight disadvan- 
tage to the Union forces ; but they had taken up an impregna- 
ble position, and " Seminary Ridge " had given the troops confi- 
dence in themselves and in each other. There were about 
seventy -five thousand men on the side of the Union, and on the 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 433 

other side about eighty thousand. Lee's force was one hun- 
dred thousand when he started, but many had scattered beyond 
reach when the battle commenced. The second day was a 
terrific struggle on botli sides, but Lee had gained no advan- 
tage when the sun went down, nor afterwards when the battle 
was continued by moonb'ght, until both armies sought rest. 
The position taken by Sickles on the second day has been 
blamed by some military authorities, but the greatest authority 
we know. Gen. Grant, after surveying the battle-field with a 
full knowledge of all the circumstances, pronounced Sickles to 
have been " riglit." The dawn of day on the 3d saw the battle 
recommenced at Gulp's Hill ; but the Confederates were repulsed 
after a struggle which continued from about six in the morn- 
ing until eleven. There was a lull until about one P.M., when 
one hundred and fifty great guns opened fire upon the Federal 
position, and for two hours the atmosphere seemed freighted 
with death ; then came the charge up Cemetery Ridge, one of 
the finest charges of the war; but heroism was met by heroism, 
and position told sufiiciently to more than compensate the 
Union disparity of numbers. The attack was a grand failure, 
and the battle of Gettysburg w^as won for the North. The 
losses on the part of the South were over thirty-one thousand, 
and Meade was generally blamed because he did not follow up 
his advantage. President Lincoln is reported to have said that 
"Providence had twice delivered the army of northern Vir- 
ginia into our hands, and, with such opportunities neglected, 
we ought scarcely to hope for a third chance." Meade allowed 
Lee even to carry off the prisoners taken in the first two days, 
and slowly followed him to the Rapidan. Grant, in the same 
place, would have ended the war at Gettysburg! The cam- 
paign so ended, closed out all fears of a northern invasion, and 
Lee slowly retired toward Richmond to wait the time for a sur- 
render of his hopeless struggle. The veterans lost in the great 
battle, added to the death of Stonewall Jackson at Chancellors- 
ville, had taken the heart almost entirely out of the once in- 
domitable force. 

42. Admiral Du Pont, on the 7th of April, 18G3, tried to 
force his way to Charleston with eight iron-clads, but after 
engaging Fort Sumter for nearly two hours, and having failed 
to silence the batteries, he drew off to reconsider the attack, 
and eventually concluded that Charleston could not be taken 
without a combined assault by land and sea. Fort Wagner 
was afterwards taken by regular approaches, and Fort Sumter 



434 HISTORY OF dominion of CANADA, 

reduced to ruins ; but even then it was found impossible with 
tlie force at hand to effect a capture. Thus the year came to 
an end with results generally more favorable for the Union 
arms than any previous year since the rebellion commenced. 
The Confederates claimed Chickamauga, but the victory was 
tempered by the heroism of Thomas. Chancellorsville was not 
a crushing defeat for the Union arms, and Galveston was the 
only considerable gain made by that side, except that Charles- 
ton had been held against the Union assaults. The record on 
the Union side had many brilliant features. The doul)tful vic- 
tory won by i>ragg at Chickarnauga had been follow(;d by the 
destruction of his army at Chattanooga, in the charge up Mis- 
sionary Kidge. The battles before Vicksburg, and the capture 
of that fortress city, with the demolition of two armies, more 
than e(][ualled in results the three days at Gettysl)urg. Port 
Hudson and Jackson Avere but small items in a return of such 
magnitude. The Mississippi had passed under the control of 
the North. The Confederates were cut off from supplies, Ar- 
kansas, East Tennessee, Mississippi, and much of Louisiana, 
with Texas to the Rio Grande, had submitted to Union arms. 
There was substantial cause for rejoicing in the North, but the 
price was felt to be enormous. JIow much more terrible was 
the cost paid by the South for its terrific failure ? 



CHAPTER XXXV. 

THE AMEKICAN CIVIL W Mi — (^continued) . 

1. Lieut. -Gen. Grant had won the suffrage of all thinking 
men by his promptitude and capacity for command, before the 
command in chief of all the forces of the North was conferred 
upon him. Men spoke of his good fortune, which consisted in 
his leaving nothing to chance where his powers could be made 
to cover an emergency. With ample authority and sufficient 
force, he was now to take supreme military control, and the 
armies of the North would move in concert. Grant assumed 
the task of subduing Lee in Virginia, devolving upon Sherman 
the duty to defeat Johnston in Georgia. 

2. Advancing on Atlanta. Gen. Joseph EUeston John- 
ston was stationed at Dalton, Ga., when Gen. Sherman moved 




ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 435 

upon his works, and he had prepared for the attack which must 
come by a series of almost impregnable lines, which must re- 
tard, and which might prevent, the, capture of Atlanta. The 
advance, with one hundred thousand 
men, was made early in May, and Sher- 
man was confronted by Johnston with 
only fifty-four thousand men, who pru- 
dently avoided an engagement in the 
open country. At Resaca Johnston de- 
fended his ]30sition with obstinate valor, 
repulsing Sherman with considerable 
loss; but Johnston, finding himself out- 
flanked, retired successively to Adairs- 
ville and Cassville, hotly contesting 
every step. The Allatoona Pass was the ^^^^^^^ ^ ^„^^^ 
scene of a very determined resistance, 

and many days elapsed before that position could be carried. 
Retreating then to Kenesaw Moimtain, where his field works 
showed profound military science, and the flanks of his position 
were strengthened by Pine and Lost Mountains, Sherman was 
once more held at bay by his brave and able antagonists, losing 
three thousand men in one assault, while the Confederate loss 
was four hundred and forty-two. Outflanked at last, the Con- 
federate general fell back on Atlanta on the 10th of July, hav- 
ing fought over one hundred miles of country more than two 
months against a force nearly twice as strong as his own ; and 
as the reward for his arduous labors he was superseded at that 
point by Jeficrson Davis, who could not appreciate the policy 
that was being pursued. Gen. Hood took command of the de- 
fence, and soon discovered that there was nothing before him 
but escape or surrender. After hard fighting, and great losses 
on l)oth sides, Hood evacuated the city of Atlanta juid made a 
dash into Tennessee. Atlanta had long been a storehouse for 
the South, and it was now in noiihern hands, having cost 
thirty thousand men on the Union side to forty thousand on the 
other. Before Sherman started from this position for his 
famous "March to the Sea," the inhabitants were, as a precau- 
tionary measure, driven from the city and the place reduced to 
ashes. The supplies of clothing, cannon, powder, wagons, 
harness, and cannon-balls which had been drawn from Georgia 
were now no longer available for the southern armies. Ten 
battles had been won and lost, but the result attained was worth 
the fighting. 



436 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

3. Thomas at Nashville. Hood, with an army of forty- 
five thousand men, abandoning Atlanta, sent a detachment to 
capture Allatoona ; but sustained a repulse in that quarter, with 
terrible slaughter, at northern hands. He surrounded Kesaca, 
but did not dare an attack, as Sherman was close upon him, 
and from that point he commenced his march upon Tennessee. 
Sherman sent reinforcements to Gen. Thomas at Nashville, and 
was ready to reorganize his force. Hood destroyed everj'thing 
as he advanced, and recruited his ranks, until, when he reached 
Pulaski, his force had grown to fifty-five thousand, against 
which Thomas could only oppose thirty thousand, under the 
command of Schofield, The Union men retreated to Franklin, 
in a bend of the Harpeth, where, with twenty thousand men, 
Schofield defended himself desperately against nearly sixty thou- 
sand, inflicting a loss of five thousand, and never losini^ a ijun. 
Continuing his retreat in the night of November 30, Schofield 
joined Thomas at Nashville, and the place was almost imme- 
diately besieged by Hood. There was an ominous inaction for 
about two weeks ; but the " Rock of Chickamauga " was only 
biding his time. He permitted Hood to believe that there was 
a glorious career of victory before the Confederate arms in 
Tennessee, and then, when every preparation had been com- 
pleted, sallied upon his besiegers, whom he defeated and 
drove in every direction during two days of teri'ible fighting, 
December 15 and 16. Thomas secured seventy-two guns, 
twelve thousand prisoners, one of them a major-geueral, and 
more than two thousand two hundred men took the amnesty 
oath as deserters. The over-confident Hood escaped over the 
Tennessee, at Bainbridge, with barely the fragment of an army. 
His force was not merely demoralized, it was destroyed. East 
Tennessee was cleared of armed Confederates, and it was evi- 
dent, for the first time, that the war in every department had 
fallen into right hands. The war at the West was ended, save 
as to a few petty operations, and Sherman was already off upon 
his celebrated march. 

4. Sherman's March. Confident that Thomas could do 
all that was required in Tennessee, Sherman started from At- 
lanta, on the IGth of November, with sixty-five thousand five 
hundred men. Skirmishers and Kilpatrick's cavalry disguised 
the direction of the army as it moved onward in four columns, 
and none knew its direction until a place had been struck. 
Railroads and works likely to succor the Confederates were 
destroyed. Telegraph wires were cut so that uo intelligence 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



437 



of his movements could be transmitted by such means, and, in 
tive weeks from the outset, with some fighting at river cross- 
ings, the army had reached the sea at Savannah. Fort Mc- 
Alhster, on the Ogechee, Avas carried by assault on the loth 
of December, and seven days later Savannah was abandoned. 
The Confederacy was once more sundered. Sherman's subor- 
dinate officers had carried out his orders by distressing the 
secessionists, and one hundred and sixty-seven guns, with over 
one thousand three hundred prisoners and immense stores of 
provisions, had been captured. The moral etFect of that march, 
however, entirely transcended its physical results. The cannon 
and twenty-five thousand bales of cotton were transmitted from 
Savannah to President I^incoln as a Christmas present for the 
nation ; and within a few days the march through Georgia was 
the only event of which any j^erson spoke or sang. 

5. The Wilderness. When the army under Grant had 
come into the Chancellor^ville country, after crossing the Rapi- 
dan, the Confederate army under Leo attacked them, toihng 
along the narrow roads in the Wilderness. The butchery was 
terril)le ; but the men on both 
sides stood their ground with 
wondrous resolution. Two days 
the battle raged, and on the third 
both armies rested in their en- 
trenchments. Grant's army was 
reduced l)y twenty thousand ; Lee 
admitted a loss of ten thousand ; 
and there was some hope that the 
Union men would retire behind 
the Rapidan once more. Grant 
made other arrangements. The 
5th and two following days had 
been spent in the Wilderness, and 
on the 8th of May he outflanked 
Lee, making for Spottsylvania 
Court-House. The Confederate 

commander was playing his best Crossing the Rapidan — Grant's Telegram. 

card, — defence, — and every 

movement was calculated upon. When Grant arrived at his 
destination, a Confederate army was before him, and for five 
days more there Avas hard pounding between men as nearly as 
possible compeers of each other in courage and skill. On the 
12th of May Grant determined that he Avould once more turn 




488 HISTORY OF dominion of CANADA, 

the right flank of his antagonist ; but Lee, divining the inten- 
tion, Avas before him at the North Anna, and the battle of Cold 
Harbor resulted on the 3d of June. It was during this 
terrible series of battles that Grant wrote his well-known 
despatch, "I propose to tight it out on this line if it 
takes all summer." The commander-in-chief came into this 
region with one hundred and eleven thousand men, and he was 
opposed by Lee, on the defensive, with seventy-five thousand. 
Before reaching the James river he had lost six thousand killed, 
twenty-six thousand wounded, and seven thousand missing. 
The Confederates carefully destroyed their own records of 
losses, consequently there is only a guess at results ; but they 
captured only six thousand prisoners, while Grant captured ten 
thousand, and it is probal)Je that in every particular their 
losses were nearly as great, perhaps greater, than the Union. 
Grant never fought harder battles than those in the Wilderness, 
at Spottsylvania, North Anna, and Cold Harbor ; but after 
every engagement Grant advanced and Lee lost ground. The 
purpose in view was the annihilation of the army under Lee, as 
it was very evident that the Confederacy could never replace 
such soldiers in the field ; and the loss of a few thousand human 
lives must not stand in the way of that result. The course of 
the army from the Rapidan to the James before the Confederate 
capital had been well considered, and the cost was on the whole 
more distressing to the South than to the North. The attack on 
Petersburg proved the prescience of Lee, as the works were so 
defended that nothing less than a regular siege could compel 
suljmission, and Grant commenced his entrenchments without 
delay. The Avorks were Ijegun in June. 

6. Before Richmoxd. There were but few events of 
national importance in the early days of the siege upon this 
spot, but the whole military scheme of the Union converged 
here. The siege kept Lee so completely occupied that he could 
do nothing to assist the other victors, while Grant was calm!}' 
directing every considerable movement. The conquest of At- 
lanta and the march to the sea all contributed to the success 
which had to be secured at Richmond. Thomas, reinforced, 
not only made Sherman's march a possibility, but destroyed an 
army also ; and Sheridan, here, there, and everywhere, carried 
defeat into the enemy's ranks wherever he struck. The forces 
were not greatly dissimilar, allowing for the requirements of 
attack and defence. Grant, joined by Butler's force, had one 
hundred and ten thousand men, and Lee had joined to his 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



439 



regular force of seventy-five thousand men, five thousand more, 
inckidhig the local militia and gun-boat crews. There was an 
explosion of a mine under a fort at Petersburg on the 30th of 
July, and the work became a ruin ; but the result was not of 
such a character as to enable the Union forces to carry Peters- 
burg. The Weldon Railroad Avas captured by good strategy 
and hard fighting, on the 18th of August, and although Lee, 
knowing tlio importance of the communication, put forth all his 
powers to recapture that position, the Union lines permanently 
closed in upon him to that extent. The scheme which had so 
many times called ofi" the Union forces from the capital of the 
Confederacy was to be tried once UKn-e, and Washington was 
threatened ; but Grant continued to devote his personal energy 
upon Lee, and made ample provision for the defence of the 
northern territory through other hands. 

7. Cedar Creek. Gen. Hunter had allowed himself to be 
deflected from the line of march planned fur him, and there was 
in consequence an opportunity for Gen. Lee to despatch Early 
along the Shenandoah Valley toward Washington, and on the 
10th of July he threatened 
Fort Stevens, one of the de- 
fences of the capital, with 
twenty thousand men. One 
day lost there rendered 
action an impossibility, and, 
with some plunder, having 
burned a village, he was 
back in the Shenandoah. 
Sheridan, despatched by 
Grant for the purpose, came 
down upon Early like a 
cyclone, striking him at 
Winchester, and again at 
Fisher's Hill, driving him 
apparently into thin air. 
The Confederate general, 
having been reinforced, 
struck Sheridan's camp at 




SHERIDAN S ARRIVAL AT CEDAR CREEE. 



daylight on the 19th of Oc- 
tober, at Cedar Creek, during the absence of Sheridan, and 
the loft flank was turned and driven in confusion for some 
distance. Sheridan heard the cannonade, and returned at full 
speed to find the aspect of afi'airs. His men felt his presence 
as an inspiration, and when he said to them, "Boys, we are 



440 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

going back," there was no difficulty in routing the Confederates, 
recapturing his own guns and thirty pieces of artillery beside, 
releasing his own men and taking two thousand prisoners before 
sundown. Early and his force were completel}' l)rf)ken by this 
brilliant campaign of only one month, and Washington was 
threatened no more. The joint expedition on Eed river, which 
was to have captured Shreveport, proved a failure because of 
the incompetency of Gen. Banks, who was routed by the Con- 
federates at Sal)ine Cross-roads. Gen. Banks was at once 
relieved of his command. 

8. Mobile was the object of an expedition nnder the com- 
mand of Admiral Farragut, and his ships fought their way past 
the Confederate forts to engao-e the iron-clad fleet, all of which 
were captured or put to flight. The iron ram " Tennessee " was 
one of the prizes. Fort Fisher, the defence of AVilmington 
Harl)or, N.C., was attacked by Commodore Porter, and a land 
force under Gen. Butler, Dec. 24, 25 ; but, after bombarding 
the fort, Butler was convinced it could not be taken, so he re- 
turned to Fortress Monroe. The fleet remained olFtlic harbor, 
as Porter was certain that the fort could be reduced, and upon 
his request the troops originally sent were returned to him with 
one thousand five hundred more, and the works were carried 
by a hand-to-hand fight on the 15th of January, 1865 ; the as- 
sailants being two columns, one of soldiers and the other of 
sailors. The defenders l)ehaved heroically. 

9. Eesults OF THE Campaign. The unification of the war 
under the lieutenant-o-eneral showed excellent results. The 
blockade had l)ecome so effectual that the Confederacy was at 
its last gasp. Fort Fisher, just taken, closed the last Confed- 
erate port. Confederate 

~V __ ^B^^fe^ cruisers, so called, had 

- "^" ' ~"^ damaged northern com- 

merce, but the South was 
without commerce of any 
kind. The Alabama, suf- 
fered by the British to es- 
cape from an English port, 
had done immense injury, 
for which Great Britain 
ultimately paid ; and, before the war ended, Capt. AVinslow, of 
the Kearsarge, destroyed that vessel ofl" Cherl)ourg harbor, 
Commander Semmes escaping in an English, yacht after he had 
surrendered. The wants of the men under arms, and more 



T'lC ALAB\MA, 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 44:1 

especially of the wouncled and suffering, called forth an amount 
of philanthropy, in all classes, such as was never exceeded in the 
annals of civilization. Over seventeen millions of dollars were 
expended by the sanitary and Christian commissions in such 
works of mercy, their modes of operation being numberless. 
Despite the load of debt incurred by the administration in con- 
ducting the war, Abraham Lincoln, renominated by the Repub- 
lican party, with George B. McClellan for his opponent, put for- 
ward by the Democrats, carried the Union by a majority of over 
four hundred thousand, and McClellan had only three States. 
The gains of the Confederacy in field or fort, this year, had 
been small indeed. Olustee and the Sabine Cross-roads, Ber- 
muda Hundred and Monocacy, were all their victories, except 
that they held Grant at arm's length at Richmond, and had de- 
feated expeditions at Red river and into Florida. On every 
side they were giving way. North and South Carolina were 
their only States east of the Mississippi. Mississippi, Alabama, 
Virginia, Tennessee, Georgia, and Florida, had been overrun 
by northern troops. The Wilderness, Spottsylvania, and Cold 
Harbor had been followed by the results of victory for the 
North, and there had been undoubted victories for the Union 
arms at Resaca, Dallas, Kenesaw, and Atlanta, at Pleasant 
Hill, Winchester, Fisher's Hill, Cedar Creek, and at Nashville. 
The forts in ^lolVile harbor, Fort McAllister, Fort DeRussy : 
the march through Georgia ; the capture of Atlanta and Savan- 
nah ; the devastation of the Shenandoah Valley, and the dem- 
olition of its army of defence ; the annihilation of Hood's army 
by Thomas ; the coast blockaded by our navy ; the destruction 
of the flotilla at Mobile, and the firm grasp by Grant of every 
avenue to victory, as well as of Lee and the last shred of Con- 
federate force at Richmond, left it now only a question of a few 
months at longest, when the rebellion should be reckoned 
among the things of the past. 

10. The Last Campaign. The beginning of the end had 
come, and already the Union forces were concentrating upon 
Richmond, with the desire of the huntsman to be in at the death. 
Sherman, after a brief rest at Savannah, had only to end the 
military career of Johnston, and he could then join Grant. 
Sheridan was already in the lines of circumvallation. Yv^ilson 
and Stoneman were within hail, ready for whatever duty the 
commander-in-chief might find necessary, and the courage of 
the nation stood never at a higher pitch of enthusiasm. 

IL Sherman's march through the Carolinas, from Savannah, 



442 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

commenced February 1, 1865, after a brief rest, was a move- 
ment as rapid as the conditions of the time and hot haste could 
render possible. Eivers that had no bridges without a long 
distance were waded, and one battle was fought by his army 
shoulder deep in a stream. Grant's orders were, that he should 
come north without delay ; and Sherman obeyed to the letter 
and spirit. Fifty miles was his front, and the army, sixty thou- 
sand strong, marched in four columns, leaving the broad print 
of their footsteps in desolation. Hardee evacuated Charleston 
and retreated north towards Lee, with twelve thousand men. 
Columbia, the State capital, was burned by accident. Kilpat- 
rick, routed by a sudden rush of Wade Hamptou's forces, re- 
covered the surprise, gathered up his men, and retrieved his 
fortune. Fayetteville, North Carolina, saw the first decided 
stand against the Union armies. Johnston had collected forty 
thousand men under Beauregard, Hardee, Cheatham, and Bragg, 
with cavalry forces under VVheeler and Hampton. A halt was 
called on the 11th of March, to mass the forces of the Union, 
and on the 1 5th the word was once more, " Forward ! " Hardee, 
on the left wing, attacked him in a narrow pass, but the force 
was beaten off. The right was attacked near Bentonville by 
Johnston with his main body, but there was another defeat for 
the Confederates on the 18th. Halting his forces at Golclsboro', 
on the 19th of March, Sherman hastened fonvard to City Point 
to consult with his commander. A junction of forces between 
Lee and Johnston was now the forlorn hope of the Confeder- 
ates, and the chance was microscopic, with Grant on the alert 
as usual, and so many forces converging toward the Union lines. 
Still Lee would not abandon his hope as long as a possibility 
remained. 

12. Before Richmond Again. An attack on the right 
was the device that was to divert Grant's attention from the 
more important movements contemplated by the Confederate 
general, and Fort Stedman was surprised and captured at day- 
break, March 25, with a loss of two thousand five hundred 
troops on either side, including the assault by which the posi- 
tion was recovered ; and Lee lost two thousand prisoners out 
of his force of only five thousand. Hardly five hundred re- 
turned to report the substantial failure ; and Grant, not called 
off from his main purpose, closed in with fatal tenacity upon the 
works. He saw that the time for the evacuation or surrender 
of Richmond was at hand, and his watchfulness was communi- 
cated to every man in the ranks. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



443 



13. Five Forks. The movement of Sheridan toward Five 
Forks was part of a much larger operation commenced by 
Grant on the last day of March to turn Lee's right. Tlie Con- 
federate general fought with his whole force to avoid the ca- 
lamity ; but on the 1st of April the brilliant affair at Five Forks 
completed the operation, taking nearly five thousand prisoners, 
and rendering Lee's position, in a military sense, untenable. 
The Union loss was only about one thousand, and the end was 
now within easy reach. 

14. Petersburg and Eichmond were evacuated on the fol- 
lowing days in consequence of an advance of the Avhole line upon 
the works. President Davis Avas informed soon after — ten in 
the morning of the 2d — that the 
city could be held no longer, and 
before the next morning at four, 
Richmond, damaged as much by 
fire and explosions as their means 
would permit, had been aban- 
doned by the army under Lee, 
whose hope was now that he might 
escape from the toils of his able 
adversary. Davis escaped to Dan- 
ville, hoping to hear tidings of 
success in the field from Lee ; but 
the case was hopeless. He then 
fled towards Johnston, and re- 
mained a while at Greensboro', 
N.C. ; but seeing no hope there, 
started for Georgia with a cav- 
alry force of two thousand, which 

soon dwindled to very meagre proportions. Then, putting 
aside the dignity of office, he tried to escape with his family, 
and was captured on the 10th of May, to be confined in Fort- 
ress Monroe for two years, and then liberated on the bail of 
Horace Greeley, a monument of northern mercy. Turning 
now to Lee, a lion at bay, we find him at Amelia Court-House 
with thirty-five thousand men, trying in vain to provision his 
army ; and Avith Grant close upon his tracks, outnumbered, out- 
generalled, l)orne downe at every point, his ranks thinned out 
by the hourly desertions of starving men, Avliole corps sur- 
rounded and captured, the heroic defender of the cause of the 
Confederacy proposed to meet Grant and discuss the terms of 
peace. Hemmed in on all sides, he Avas at the mercy of his 




JEFFERSON DAVIS. 



444 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



foes ; but still he was a brave man, and that secured him consid- 
eration. Grant could offer no terms but to receive his sur- 
render, and on the 9th of April he accepted that hard condition 
in the open field at Appomattox Court-House, with all that re- 
mained of his once powerful army, now reduced to twenty-seven 
thousand men. An army of seventy thousand men had been 
annihilated in ten daj^s, and there was no longer a plank on 
which the Confederacy could float. His treatment of Lee had 
in it so much of magnanimity that the outlying generals speedily 
came in to share the terms upon which the war was ended. 
There were some operations after this date, and before the news 
could be flashed along the coast ; but the rebellion had now 
been extinguished in the blood of nearly a million of men. 

15. Consummation of the Tragedy. Grant returned to 
Washington to disband the army which had won such laurels ; 

and there, on the 14th 



'ly ii 



9:m 



of Aprils Abraham Lin- 
coln was assassinated in 
the midst of universal 
rejoicings. Grant had 
been invited to share 
the president's box that 
night in Ford's theatre, 
but his engagements 
prevented acceptance, 
or, perhaps, he also 
would have fallen a vic- 
tim to the savage hate 
of men who could not 
appreciate the mercy 
shown to their mis- 
guided champions. The 
news went over the 
land and around the 
world with the eflect of 
a funeral pall in the 
presence of a bridal party ; and such tears were shed, even in 
distant lands, over the heroic life thus ended, as told of an in- 
fluence over the souls of civilized man everywhere, unexampled 
in the history of rulers. 

16. Compared with Lincoln's death, men all over the Union 
held the heavy cost of tlie war as nothing. Three hundred 
thousand brave citizens had died facins: the foe in battle 




ASSASSINATION OF PKESIDENT LINCOLN. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES., 445 

army, or in diseases superinduced by war ; two hundred thou- 
sand maimed and crippled remained to tell of the struggles 
througTi which the Union had passed ; and the armies in gray 
had probably suffered more severely. The Union debt had in- 
creased to two billion seven hundred and fifty million dollars ; 
but all these items were as nothing for a time in the presence of 
that soul of mercy and patriotism, slaughtered by an insane 
zealot, with the cry "/Sic semper tyrannis." The words seemed 
accursed, and the cowardly rage which at such an hour could 
fruitlessly slaughter the best man of his time and country, pro- 
cured, as it merited, the reprobation of the human race. The end 
of the Lincoln epoch had arrived. Andrew Johnson had become 
president ; but upon the hei-o of the war, after Lincoln, the 
greatest man, all eyes were turned. The nation was growing, 
and demanded able administration, for, even while the war pro- 
gressed, new States had sought admission to the Union. West 
Virginia and Nevada had brought up the numbers to thirty-six 
in June, 1863, and in October, 18G4; besides which the prob- 
lem of reabsorbing the seceded States presented a task for every 
leading mind to ponder. 



CHAPTER XXXVI. 

ENGLAND FROM 1840 TO 1856. 

REIGN OF VICTORIA — AFFAIRS IN IRELAND— THE CRIMEA FALL OF 

SEBASTOPOL. 

L Our next work must be to trace the fortunes of Great 
Britain from 1840. The good Queen Victoria had ascended the 
throne, as we have already noted. Sir Robert Peel's ministry 
fell soon after the passage of the Corn Law Repeal Bill. 
Ireland, with the Roman Catholic Emiuicipation Bill, was not 
yet satisfied. One great cause of the distiir!)-inco remained. 
The population of Ireland embraced si.x and a half millions 
of Roman Catholics, while the members of the Church of Eng- 
land on the island numbered but little over eight hundred and 
fifty thousand, yet the Church of England was by law estab- 
lished in Ireland, and the whole population, Roman Catholic 
and Protestant alike, were taxed for its support. " In 1834 
the revenues of the establishment in Ireland were more than 



446 



HISTOHY OF DOMIXIOX OF CANADA, 




QUEEN VICTORIA. 



eight hundred thousand pounds. There were fourteen hundred 
parishes, of which forty-one did not contain a single Protestant ; 
twenty had only five each, and one hundred and sixty-live could 
number only twenty-live each ; yet there 
were four Protestant archbishops and eigh- 
teen bishops. The Roman Catholic Church 
received no support by law. Its priests 
were poor, and the little Avliich their poor 
parishioners could ofler them — the cow, 
the pig, the sack of corn, or the bit of 
money — was carried oft* by the tithe col- 
lector ; often backed by an armed police, to 
support the clergymen of the establish- 
ment." In view of these things we w^onder 
only that the peasant hatred of the Church 
was not even greater than it was. In 
the midst of these things the English 
Parliament debated, session after session, the subject of Irish 
difiiculties ; and from 1835 to 1840 a system of national educa- 
tion was introduced into Ireland with beneficial results. But 
from 1841 to 1843 Daniel O'Connell raised the cry for the re- 
peal of the imion in Ireland, and the sentiment was caught up 
by every tongue and repeated with patriotic zeal. The Pepeal 
Association was the organic form assumed by the agitation. 
Funds were raised to support the cause, at the rate of three 
thousand pounds a week. But finally, before it was too late, 
government interfered. A proclamation was issued, forbidding 
the assembling of a great public meeting summoned by 
O'Connell. " A few days later, O'Connell and other leaders 
of the Repeal Association were arrested, and tried. They were 
convicted of conspiracy, sedition, and unlawful assembling ; but 
an appeal having been made against the sentence, some tech- 
nical difiiculty was allowed by the judges to whom the last 
reference was had, and the j^risoners, in consequence, were set 
at liberty. This magnanimity on the part of the British 
government had a great effect in lessening the moral influence 
which O'Connell jiossessed over his countrymen. His political 
sincerity was questioned, his popularity deserted him, and a few 
years later he died at Genoa." 

2. In the midst of these things Father Mathew came to 
the front with the temperance movement. This was in 1841. 
This movement exerted a wholesome influence, for some four or 
five years, over the affairs of Ireland. Drunkenness, and its ten 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 447 

thousand crimes, disappeared ; but, unfortunately, this reforma- 
tion was associated with the repeal movement, so that wlien the 
latter was overcome, the former also languished, and the evils 
of intemperance again triumphed, — triumphed amid fearful 
results. " Sir KobertPeel attributed these calamities, in a great 
measure, to the want of a liberal provision for religious and 
secular education among the priests and people of that unhappy 
country. To supply this Avant, a bill for the establishment of 
three colleges, at Belfast, Cork, and Limerick, was introduced 
and passed through Parliament. To insure to the priests an 
education in their own land, another bill proposed an enlarge- 
ment of the grant to Maynooth College. This institution, for 
the training of Roman Catholic priests in their own faith, had 
been founded in the year 1795 ; Ijiit the grant made to it, being 
only nine thousand pounds per annum, was inadequate to the 
numbers requiring education there ; nor could it secure a very 
high order of instruction. The bill for increasinsc the OT-ant to 
Ma3'nooth met with violent opposition, being regarded by many 
as injurious to the principles of the Protestant Keformation, 
and providing for the maintenance of religious error. It was 
carried, however, and the grant to the college increased to 
twenty-six thousand three hundred and eighty pounds." 

3. But a greater woe awaited Ireland ! In 1846-47 one of 
the most terrible of famines ever recorded, spread its desolating 
terrors overthe island. "This wasowingto the ftiilure of the potato 
crop, the staple food of the Irish laborer. The disease in the potato 
plant extended with such fearful rapidity as often to convert in a 
single night acres of bloom into a mass of putrefaction. Thcscenes 
of suffering presented during this calamitous time w^ere heart-rend- 
ing. Often, when the door of the wretched cabin was opened, 
there was found a whole family lying dead in a group. The 
wail of the V starving arose in every district. The workhouse 
doors were besieged by famishing multitudes begging for bread. 
Government, roused by the magnitude of the calamity, applied 
itself to immediate measures of relief. Above half a million 
of peasantry had been deprived of their usual food, — potatoes. 
There was grain, but they had no money to buy it. To afford 
employment and wages to the laborer, government appropriated 
several millions sterling to the erection of public works in Ire- 
land, and in March, 1847, seven hundred and thirty-four 
thousand laborers found employment, their aggregate wages 
amounting to two hundred thousand pounds. Large sums were 
subscribed for sendins: food to Ireland. All duties were taken 



448 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

off of grain, the navigation laws were suspended, so that relief 
might be transmitted immediately, and food imported from 
foreio'n countries. Yet with such fearful strides had disease 
and death followed in the train of famine, that hundreds died 
before relief could be brought to them, or perished from 
exhaustion before they could reach the public works. The 
scenes of horror exceeded anything which the pen of Dante or 
Defoe, or the canvas of Poussin, had depicted. In the words of 
Lord John Russell : ' A famine of the thirteenth had fallen on 
the population of the nineteenth century.' The conduct of the 
British government reflects the highest honor on its character 
for generous liberality. During these years of wide-spread 
distress no less than eight millions of pounds were bestowed 
upon Ireland cither in the form of public appropriations or 
private subscriptions. Nor were the people and government of 
the United States less liberal in their efforts to mitigate the 
horrors of the Irish famine. Private subscriptions were opened, 
large supplies of provisions collected, and shipped in a public 
armed vessel to the coast of Ireland. During the year of the 
famine and those immediately succeeding the immigration of 
the Irish to foreign shores was immense. The population, 
which in 1841 was over eight millions, was in 1860 but little over 
six. The Irish left the land of their birth, to find subsistence 
in the country of strangers, but their affections still centred in 
the home they have left. In proof of this, the remittances 
made to Ireland, from her children abroad, amounted in the year 
1853 to nearly seven millions of dollars. Theirs is the feeling 
which breathes so touchingly in the familiar song of ' The Irish 
Emigrant's Lament ' : — 

' They say there's bread and work for all, 
And the sun shines always there, 
But I'll ne'er forget old Ireland, 
Were it fifty times as fair.' 

In July of 1848 an insurrection broke out in Ireland, headed by 
Smith O'Brien, Thomas Francis Meagher, and others. It had 
for its object the old aim, repeal of the union and restoration of 
the ancient constitution and native rule. This rebellion was 
put down with little difficulty on the part of the government. 
O'Brien and other leaders were arrested, tried, and sentenced 
to death. The sentence was commuted to that of transportation 
for life. At the conclusion of the Russian war an amnesty was 
proclaimed, under which these political exiles, excepting only 



ENGLAND, AXD THE UNITED STATES. 



449 



those who had bi-oken their parole, returned to their country 
after an absence of eight years." 

4. In 1848 the revolution in France drove King Louis 
Philippe from his throne ; and it was the apparent success of 
this revolution which, together with the great distress among 
the manufacturing districts of Euii'land, caused the Chartists to 
adopt measures with a vicAV to force their charter upon the 
government. To aftbrd them a pretext for assemljling, they 
got up a monster petition, to be presented on the 10th of April 
by as many as could gain entrance to the House of Commons. 
In this Avay they expected to alarm the government to fear, and 
proclaim a republic. But the great Duke of AYellington was 
sufficient for the defeat of this grand scheme. A prochimation 
forbade more than ten persons to present a petition at any one 
time, and otherwise prohibited the asseml)ly of large bodies in 
connection therewith. Police, cannon, and troops were placed 
in position to command the crowd, should it assemble ; "regi- 
ments were kept in reserve at various other unseen points, 
and artillery was 
in readiness at the 
Tower, to be con- 
veyed on board 
armed steamers to 
any part of the 
metropolis which 
might require such 
defence. All the 
pul:)lic offices were 
well guarded, and 
the Bank of Eng- 
land was occupied 
by bodies of in- 
fantry, and strongly 
barricaded. One 
hundred and seven- 
ty thousand special 

constables, previously trained for duty, were stationed through- 
out London ; and among these served on that important occa- 
sion, Louis Napoleon Bonaparte, afterwards Emperor of the 
French. These wise precautions effectually frustrated the 
hopes and desigus of the Chartists. Being informed by a few 
resolute policemen that they might send their petition in a 
proper manner to the house, but that any attempt to pass the 




TOWKR OF LOXpnx. 



450 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

bridges in procession would be resisted, the large body of some 
fifty "thousand men broke their ranks and gave up their attempt. 
A few bodies of Chartists tried to force their way into West- 
minster, but were repelled by the police, and by seven o'clock 
in the evening all had dispersed, and order and quiet reigned 
in the vast metropolis. The most violent Chartist leaders, 
who still kept up the spirit of insurrection in London, were 
seized during the course of the summer, tried, convicted, and 
transported for life." 

5. In 1854 occurred the singular spectacle of a union 
army of English and French marching to defend the empire 
of Mohammed against the Eussians. Russia now threat- 
ened to become the controlling power of Christendom ; Turkey 
lay, as she does to-day, prostrate at the feet of a Russian army ; 
and the peace of Adrianople, concluded between these.nations 
in 1821), threatened the very existence of the Ottoman Empire. 
At these successes England became jealous, and all Europe 
was filled with alarm. The tottering dominions of the sultan 
were all that prevented the czar's control of the ^Mediterranean. 
These once overcome, and England would have a rival on the 
seas in the military advantages of Russia, and the eastern em- 
pire of the English would be overcome. But the circumstances 
which precipitated the war arose from a conflict between the 
Latin and Greek churches on the su1)ject of the holy places in 
Jerusalem. This circumstance, as related by Berard, in his 
history of England, are as follows : "Syria was a province of 
Turkey, but the sultan permitted both Greek and Latin Chris- 
tians to maintain places for worship in the holy city. Tliere 
for centuries had been established churches, shrines, and grot- 
tos, commemorative of various scenes in our Saviour's life, 
sufferings, and death. Among these the Cliurch of the Holy 
Sepulchre, built over the supposed site of the tomb of our 
Lord, was held especially sacred. For the exclusive posses- 
sion of this holy place the monks of the Greek and Latin 
churches kept up incessant disputings. Some idea of the extent 
of these disgraceful quarrels may be gathered from the follow- 
ing conversation, Avhich took place between an English mission- 
ary and a Turkish pasha of Jerusalem, whom the former 
sought to convert to Christianity : ' What are the advantages 
of your religion over mine?' asked the pasha. 'Peace on 
earth, and glory after death,' replied the missionary. ' As to 
the latter,' said the Turk, 'our Prophet promises that too ; and 
for the peace on earth, the Church of the Sepulchre has a band 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 451 

of Greek Christians on the one side, and a band of Eoman 
Christians on the <?ther, and in tiie centre is a Turkish guard, 
to keep them from cutting each others' throats.' Tiie liTussian 
czar, KichoLas, as head of the Greek Church, and Louis JS'apo- 
leon as the representative and protector of the Latin Christians, 
demanded of the suhan for their respective churches exclusive 
privileges quite incompatible Avith each other. The sultan, 
Abdul-Mejdid, was pkiced in an embarrassing position, — be- 
tween two formidable and rival claimants, both of whom he 
w\as desirous to please. After much delay and perplexity he 
issued a firman (or decree) designed to be sufficiently liberal 
towards the Greek Church, and yet not so partial as to give 
umbrage to the Latin Christians. The Czar Nicholas, on the 
very day the firman was issued, demanded, through his am- 
bassador, the right of absolute protection over all Greek Chris- 
tians. This demand, it was asserted, implied the control over 
twelve millions of the sultan's sul)jects. It was refused l^y the 
Ottoman Porte. The western powers then interfered, and at 
the end of eight months of diplomatic negotiations England 
and France announced their intention to take up arms in aid 
of the sultan, against the 'unprovoked aggression ' of the czar. 
Then these western powers united as the ally of Turkey, and 
the troops of these nations saw service in strangely foreign parts. 
On the 4th of the preceding October, the New Year's Day of 
the Mohammedans, the sultan's declaration of war against 
Russia had been read in all the mosques, and large Turkish 
armies were collected in th'e Danubian provinces and on the 
frontiers of Asia. In the wild mountain region of Caucasus 
the native trilies, to the number of twenty thousand, under 
their brave chief and prophet, Schamyl, united with a Turkish 
army to attack the Russians. The heroism of this mountain 
chief, and the enthusiasm which he awakened in his followers, 
occasioned severe reverses to the Russian arms during the year 
1854. The latter, however, finally prevailed, and the czar 
triumphed in that quarter, b}^ the capture of the important town 
of Kars, towards the close of 18.55." The defence of Kars 
had been conducted by Gen. Williams, afterwards governor 
of Nova Scotia. 

7. Plonor was reflected upon, the armies of the sultan in 
their desperate performances in the DoI)rudscha, an unhealthy 
section between the Danube and Black Sea. " The Russians 
with a powerful army occupied the Danul)ian principalities of 
"\Yallachia,and Moldavia, and the Turks, under Omar Pasha, in 



452 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

the autumn of 1853, addressed themselves to the difficult task 
of opposing their farther advance upon the dominions of Turke3^ 
The victory of Oltenitza, Avon in November, and other successes 
obtained during the winter, animated the spirits and courage of 
the Turks. In the spring of 1854 a Russian army laid siege to 
Silistria, an important town situated on the Danube. From the 
11th of ]May to the 22d of June the place was besieged. The 
defence was maintained Avith great spirit, skill, and l)ravery on 
the part of the Turks, under the command of Mnssa Pasha. At 
length the Russians — aware that the allied armies had reached 
Varna ; that a detachment of French and English had been sent 
forward for the relief of Silistria ; and that the coml)ined fleet 
had passed the Bosphorus — raised the siege, and turned to 
the defence of their dominions, now formidably threatened, on 
the shores of the Black Sea. At the expiration of forty-two 
days the Russian army, Avliich at one time had numbered sixty 
thousand, and had thrown, from sixty pieces of ordnance, no 
less than lift}' thousand shot and shell into the town, Avere forced 
to abandon the first siege of this campaign, the defence liaAnng 
been maintained by the skill and A'alor of Turks alone. Mean- 
while, the armies of the English and French allies had arrived 
in Turkey. OAving to lamcntal)le mismanagement on the part 
of the commissariat, Avhen the troops reached that country no 
adequate provision had been made for their support. This 
neglect occasioned a vast amount of suffering, especially at 
Varna, a port on the Black Sea, Avhere the allied forces Avere 
quartered from June until August, 1854. The soldiers Avere in 
want of tents, proper food, bedding, and medical stores. Dur- 
ing the stay at Varna the cholera and typhus fever broke out, 
and these frightful diseases, spreading through the camps and 
in the fleets, added to the intense sufferings Avhich the allied 
armies endured throughout the entire Avar." 

7. But the most thrilling scenes of the Av^ar Avere enacted in 
the Crimea, a peninsula extending into the Black Sea, on Avliich 
stood the Russian naval depot of Sebastopol. The most power- 
ful fortifications protected the Russian fleet in the harbor. The 
great batteries of Forts Constantino and Alexander, Avliich 
croAvned the northern and southern extremities of the entrance 
to the harbor, Avere not all. The place Avas also protected 
by sunken ships, Avhich barred the entrance against the approach 
of the invading fleet. The governments of England and France 
resoh'ed upon the destruction of this strong fortiflcation, by 
Avhich it Avas hoped to render it impossible for Russia to obtain 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 453 

naval supremacy in the waters of the Mediterranean Sea. On 
the 14th of September, 1854, an army of twenty-seven thousand 
English, twenty-five thousand French, and eight thousand 
Turivish troops arrived in the Crimea, and on the 19th this vast 
army marched towards Sebastopol, about thirty miles distant. 
Prince oMentschikotf, with fifty thousand liussian troops, 
awaited the allies at the Alma, one of the rivers Avhich lay in 
the route. The English were commanded by Lord Eaglan, and 
the French b}^ Marshal de St. Arnaud. The battle of the Alma 
w^as a fierce one, and the Russians were defeated, after which 
the invading army marched on for Sebastopol. The work of 
bombarding the city began on the 17th of October, 1854, and 
the siege, such as will forever form one of the most thrilling- 
themes in all the annals of war, was continued, with varied 
success, until the final bombardment of September, 1855. 
For three days the work was continued, with peculiar irregu- 
larity. These changes in the mode of fire, from slow to quick, 
and irom an entire suspension to a rapid rate, were designed to 
bewilder the enemy, and the plan was successful. The fearful 
struggle was brought to a close the following night, Avhen the 
Russians quietly withdrew across the harljor, and when, a few 
minutes later, the flames of the burning city burst upon the 
darkness. The proclamation of peace reached the allied armies 
in Sebastopol on the 2d of April, 1856, and a few weeks later 
the troops returned home, leaving in the soil behind them the 
graves of many thousand brave English and French soldiers. 
The darkness of this terrible war is relieved by a strange, fasci- 
nating light, which shines in the noble deeds of Florence Night- 
ingale, — that heroic English woman who devoted herself with 
so much skill and tenderness to the care of the sick and the 
wounded. 

8. In the winter of 1855-6 the London "Times," in re- 
ferring to the war, remarked that whatever were the losses and 
disappointments England had undergone, whatever the reverses 
of her arms, Avhatever the drains upon her treasury, these 
evils had been as nothing compared with the tremendous visita- 
tion that had fallen on her stiil)born and overbearing enemy. 
While England's trade had undergone no diminution, Russia's 
was almost completely annihilated. " If Ave have felt a little 
tightness in the money market, she has been driven to suspend 
specie payments. If we have increased our debt by sixteen 
million pounds, she AAould esteem it the greatest good fortune 
to borroAV half that sum on the most unfavorable terms. Ifwe 



454 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

bare lost a few thousand men, she has sacrificed whole heca- 
tombs of thousands. If we do not recruit as fast as we would 
wish, Ivussia has already drained the classes of men from which 
she can renew her armies. Despondency and terror, we are 
well assured, reign throughout her vast dominions." 

9. One year later, the same journal, in referring to the 
same war, said: "The great war is over. H:ird terms have 
been wrung from the exliaustion of llussia, and, after much 
subsequent wrangling, she has been held to the letter and spirit 
of her bond. We have celebrated that peace with great and 
cordial rejoicing. Prussia was admitted at the eleventh hour 
to a share in its honors. Our fleets and armies have returned, 
and have had their ovations." Thus ended a great war, mainly 
between Eua:land and Russia. 



CHAPTER XXXVII. 

THE DOMINION OF CANADA. 

FR03I 18G7 TO 1878 — goveknment or lord monck — legislation. 

1. AVe find it most convenient to leave for a while the 
aflairs of English history, and return to Canada. After we 
have followed the fortune of the Dominion during the first 
eleven years of its existence, from 1807 to 1878, we will l)ring 
forward to the latter date a record of events in the United 
States, and then resume the narrative of important aflairs con- 
nected with Great Britain, commencing at 1856, where we now 
leave them, and following the current forward which will bring 
us to our account of the Turko-liussian war, and the subse- 
quent diplomatic war between England and Russia. On the 
1st of Jul}^ 18G7, Her Majesty Queen Victoria, by proclama- 
tion, declared the provinces of Ontario (Upper Canada), 
Quebec (Lower Canada), Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick 
united under one federal government, to be known thereafter 
as the Dominion of Canada. This was perhaps the most 
important, the most salutary measure ever adopted by the 
mother country, in behalf of the Canadas, nor was it by any 
means the measure' of England. The scheme originated in 
British America, in the minds of provincial statesmen ; but it 
was throuirh the "rood oflices of the Ensflish Parliament and 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 455 



English statesmen, that the confederation was consummated at 
such an early date. 

2. The Dominion was launched with but four provinces in 
the bond of union. Since the confederation the number has 
been increased to seven. Three other provinces, viz., Prince 
Edward Island, British Columbia, and the recently established 
province of Manitoba, have since joined the compact. During 
the ten years which have elapsed since confederation the young 
nation has had a prosperous experience in many respects. The 
immediate eliect in the two Canad is, for instance, has been to 
facilitate the settlement of questions Avhich wci-e before sources 
of angry recrimination. In the Province of Quebec, a Legis- 
lature representing an enormously excessive constituency of 
Roman Catholics, conceded to the Protestant minority, on a 
question of education, what probably they would never have 
yielded to the more equally proportioned forces, when Ontario 
and Quebec were under one government. Each Provincial 
Legislature, relieved of the more general subjects of legislation 
and debate, is now vigorously pursuing the policy of develop- 
ment, extending education, promoting colonization, roads and 
railways, and encouraging immigration. 

3. The immediate causes leading to the confederation of 
the British American provinces were threefold, — emanating, 
first, from the mother country, secondly, from the United States, 
and, thirdly, from Avithin. Of these, that growing out of the 
peculiar attitude of the United States, at that time, was proba- 
bly as strong, or stronger, than any. For several years before 
the confederation England's policy towards Canada was, in 
effect, a friendly warning to prepare for a more independent 
existence. At length the provinces were told, in very explicit 
terms, that they could no longer consider themselves, in the 
matter of defence, in the same position they formerly occupied 
towards Great Britain. But not only did the policy of the 
home government demand confederation, but the attitude of 
the United States demanded it. The abrogation of the lieci- 
procity Treaty, the military operations on the great lakes con- 
trary to the provisions of the addenda to the treaty of 1818 ; 
the passport system ; the projected ship canal rotmd the falls of 
Niagara ; the Avonderful expansion of the American army and 
navy, and the civil war, were features in the j^olic}^ of the gov- 
ernment of the United States, demanding a union of the British 
provinces for putposes of mutual defence. But, aside from 
these actuating causes, there were internal influences tending 



456 HISTORY or dominion or Canada, 

towards confederation, a voice from the experience in the gov- 
ernment of the provinces. In the then province of Canada, 
constitutional government had touched a low ebb, when the 
premier was obliged to confess that he had had five administra- 
tions in two years. Under this condition the house was fast 
losing its hold on the countrj'. The administrative departments 
were becoming disorganized under such frequent changes of 
chiefs and policies. Ihese, Avith many other causes Avhich arc 
more fully mentioned in the proper place, combined Avith such 
force that in 1806 public opinion in the provinces was ripe 
for union. Indeed, with some considcraljle exceptions in favor 
of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, there was hardly a man 
of prominence in the whole of British America, who in 1867 
would not have been in favor of some kind of union. There 
were those who did not like the plan proposed, and some of 
the leading public men of the liberal party in both Nova Scotia 
and New Brunswick fought the scheme with great vehemence. 
But the opposition of these gentlemen, especially that of Hon. 
Joseph Howe, in Nova Scotia, was not wholly consistent with 
their jjrevious acts. However, the great measure triumphed, 
for which every wise citizen of Canada to-day is dcA^outly 
thankful. 

4. Under the Federal Constitution of 1867 the Parliament 
of Canada consists of the Queen, a Senate appointed by the 
crown for life, and a House of Commons. The members of 
this Parliament were fixed l)y the constitution as follows : — 



For Ontario ..... 
" Quebec ..... 
" Nova Scotia .... 
" New Brunswick 

The ninnber of senators was fixed (except that six additional 
senators might be appointed by the crown), that of members of 
the House of Commons was to vary according to the population 
ascertained at each decennial census, Quebec retaining the same 
number. Term of election, five years, unless the house be sooner 
dissolved. Sessions, annual. The property qualification was : 
for senators, the possession of four thousand dollars real and 
personal estate over and above all liabilities ; for members of 
the House of Commons, in Ontario and Quebec, five hundred 
pounds sterling of real estate. In New Brunswick, the posses- 
sion, for six months previous to the issue of the writ of election, 





Members of the 


Senators. 


House 


of Commons 


24 




82 


24 




65 


12 




19 


12 




19 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 4:57 

of one thousand two hundred dollars of real estate ; in Nova 
Scotia, "a legal or equitable freehold estate in possession of 
the clear yearly value of eight dollars ($8.00)," or the candi- 
date must be "qualitied to be an elector." The following were 
electors : in Ontario and Quebec, every male subject being the 
owner or occupier or tenant of real property of the assessed 
value of three hundred dollars or of the yearly value of thirty 
dollars, if within cities or towns, or of the assessed vahie of 
two hundred dollars or the yearly value of twenty dollars, if 
not so situate. In New Brunswick, every male subject of the 
age of twenty- one years, not disqualified by law, assessed for 
the year for which the register is made up in respect of real 
•estate to the amount of one hundred dollars, or of personal 
property or personal and real amounting together to four thou- 
sand dollars, or four thousand dollars annual income. In Nova 
Scotia, all subjects of the age of twenty-one 3'ears, not disquali- 
fied by law, assessed for the year for which the register is made 
up in respect of real estate to the value of one hundred and 
fifty dollars, or in respect of personal estate or of real and per- 
sonal together to the value of three hundred dollars. Votinsf 
in Quebec, Ontario, and Nova Scotia was open, on inquiry by 
the returning officers, after the person desirous of voting has by 
reference to the registration list established his right to 
vote. In New Brunswick votes were taken by ballot. The 
executive, called the "Privy Council," consists of thirteen 
members. 

5. The Constitution or Union Act fixed the local or pro- 
vincial governments as follows : The local Legislature of 
Ontario consists of a Lieutenant-Governor, appointed by the 
Dominion, and one house only, of eighty-two members, called 
the Legislative Assembly. Limits of constituencies the same as 
for the Commons of Canada. Qualifications of members and 
electors the same as al)ove. Terms four years, unless sooner 
dissolved. Sessions, annual. The local Legislature of Quebec 
consisted of a Lieutenant-Governor, appointed by the Dominion, 
a nominated Legislative Council of twenty-four, and a Legis- 
lative Assembly of sixty-five. Limits of constituencies the 
same as for the Senate and Commons respectively. Qualifica- 
tion of senators, members, and electors, the same as lor the 
Dominion. Term of Parliament, four years, unless sooner dis- 
solved. Sessions, annual. The local Legislature of Nova 
Scotia consisted of a Lieutenant-Governor, appointed by the 
Dominion, a nominated Legislative Council of twenty, and an 



458 



IIISTOKY OF DOMIXION OF CANADA, 



elective Legislative Assembly of fifty-three. Term, four years, 
milcss dissolved. Sessions, amiual. Qualifications as 'for the 
Dominion Lcsfislature above. The local Lcijislature of New 
Brunswick consisted of the Lieutenant-Governor, appointed by 
the Dominion, a nominative Legislative Council of twenty-two, 
and a Legislative Assembly of forty members. Qualification 
of senators, assembly-men, and electors the same as for the 
Dominion. Duration of Parliament, four years, unless sooner 
dissolved. Sessions, annual. 

At this time the Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island, 
although that province was still independent of the Union, con- 
sisted of thirty members, elected for four years, unless Parlia- 
ment be sooner dissolved. The Lei>:islative Council consisted of 
thirteen members, elected for eight years ; half returning every 
four years, but being eligible for reelection. Qualification : for 
members of the Asseml)l3", the possession of free or leasehold 
estate worth one hundred and sixty dollars above encum- 
brances ; for members of the Legislative Council, no qualifica- 
tion was required. Electors for niembers of the lower house 
were male subjects of twenty-one years of age, owning prop- 
erty valued at forty shillings, island currency (six hundred 
and forty dollars), X)er annum, or who Avere bylaw liable to 

statute labor. As by 25 Vic, 
cap. 2, almost every man was 
so liable, the sulfragc may be 
called universal. Electors for 
members of the upper house 
should own lease or freehold 
property valued at one hun- 
dred pounds, island currency, 
or three hundred and twenty 
dollars. The Executive Coun- 
cil consisted of nine members. 
One only, the colonial secre- 
tary, could hold departmental 
office. His salary was one 
thousand one hundred and 
twenty dollars per annum ; 
the other members of the 
executive received no pay. 
7. The first governor-general of t!ie Dominion of Canada 
Avas the last who administered the fxoAxrnment of Canada 




ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 459 

before confederation, viz., the Riijlit Honorable Charles Stan- 
ley, Viscount Monck, Baron of Ballytramon, in the County 
of Wexford, in the peerage of Ireland, and Baron Monck of 
Ballytramon, in the County of Wexford, in the peerage of the 
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Such is the 
title of the tirst governor-general of the Dominion. The first 
Dominion ministry was composed as follows : — 

The Hon. Sir John Alexander Macdonald, K.C.B., Minister of Justice 

ami Attorney-General. 
The Hon. Etienne Cartieu, IMinister of Militia. 
The Hon. Samuel Leonaud Tillev, C.B., Minister of Customs. 
The Hon. Alexandeu Tillocii Galt, Minister of Finance. 
The Hon. William INIcDolgall, C.B., IMinister of I'ublic Works. 
The Hon. William Peauce Howland, C B., Minister of Inland Revenue. 
The Hon. Adams George Archibald, Secretary of State for the Provinces. 
The Hon. Adam Johnston Fergusson Blair, President of the Privy 

Council. 
The Hon. Peter Mitchell, Minister of Marine and Fisheries. 
The Hon. Alexander Campbell, Postmaster-General. 
The Hon. Jean Charles Chapais, Minister of Agriculture. 
The Hon. Hector Louis Langevin, Secretary of State of Canada. 
The Hon. Edward Kenny, Receiver-General. 

8. No sooner w^as Parliament fully organized than the vast 
amount of legislation necessary to give full elTect to the con- 
federation scheme was entered upon. Laws for the govern- 
ment of departments were enacted, for the collection and 
proper distribution of revenue, for the organization of a 
militia system, and for the protection of trade and commerce, 
and the administration of justice. Many of these laws enter so 
largely into the government of the Dominion that a brief sum- 
mary of the most important of them is thought advisable in 
this place. An act was passed providing for the salaries of 
the speakers and indemnity to members. The speakers v/ere 
to receive three thousand two hundred dollars per annum ; the 
members six dollars per diem up to the end of thirty days. 
For a session lasting longer than that, six hundred dollars, 
with ten cents per mile for travelling expenses. Five dollars 
per diem were ordered to be deducted for every da3''s absence, 
unless Avhile within ten miles of the capital the member Avas 
prevented by illness from attendance. 

9. An act was passed imposing a stamp duty of one cent on 
all promissory notes and bills of exchange for twenty-five dol- 
lars ; over twenty-live dollars and not exceeding lifty dollars, 
two cents ; over lifty dollars and not exceeding one hundred 



460 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

dollars, three cents ; and three cents for each one hundred dol- 
lars or fraction after the tirst. On each draft or bill in dupli- 
cate two cents per one hundred dollars on each part ; executed 
in more than two parts, one cent per one hundred dollars for 
each part ; interest to accrue at maturity of bill or note to be 
counted as part of the sums. Letters of credit and receipts 
entitling the possessor to draw the amount again reckoned as 
bills sul)ject to duty. Commissariat or other otficial drafts and 
bank-notes, cheques on banks or savings-banks, post-office 
money-orders, and municipal debentures and coupons, were 
exempt. Duty was to be paid by using stamped paper, or an 
adhesive stamp over which the signature of maker or draw^er, 
or the date, or some other important part of the bill or note, Avas 
to be written, to cancel it, or the stamp would be of no avail. A 
penalty of one hundred dollars was incurred for stamping or 
writing a wrong date on such stamp. Duties in Nova Scotia 
to be reckoned in Nova Scotia currency. Minister of inland 
revenue appointed the stamp distributors ; their salaries were 
fixed by the governor in council. On notes or bills drawn out 
of Canada the first indorser or acceptor in Canada must affix 
the stamp. Ai^" one failing to afSx stamps or use stamp 
paper, or affixing insufficient stamps to pay duty, was liable to 
pay double duty or double the amount by which stamps were in- 
sufficient, and pay a penalty of one hundred dollars ; and in 
case double duty had not been paid the note or bill was null 
and void. Any subsequent party to a note or bill could relieve 
himself from penalty and render the instrument valid by affix- 
ing stamps for double duty ; but did not thereby relieve the 
parties previously in default ; and any holder of a note might, 
by payment of double duty, render such instrument valid without 
becoming a party thereto. To affix stamps already used was -a 
misdemeanor punishable by a fine of five hundred dollars. 
These penalties were incurred for each such instrument and by 
each such party to them. Forging, counterfeiting, or imitating 
the government stamps, or using or selling them knowing them 
to be forged, or preparing a plate or die for the purpose of the 
forgery, or having such plate or die in one's possession, or tear- 
ing off a stamp or removing writing or marks cancelling a 
stamp, was a felony punishal)le as forgery, by imprisonment not 
exceedhig twenty-one years. Such was the act passed for the 
management of revenue. 

10. The act passed for the government of the post-office 
department repealed previously existing postal laws in these 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 461 

provinces, and the whole department was brought, under the 
Kevenue Act. A department presided over by postmasters- 
general, appointed by commission under the great seal, was 
cstal)lished at Ottawa. The governor was to appoint all salaried 
postmastei'S in cities or toAvns, the deputy postmaster-general 
and post-olBce inspectors ; the postmaster-general, all other 
otfieers and servants of the department; to suspend or dismiss 
them ; open and close mail routes ; enter into and enforce con- 
tracts ; make regulations respecting mailable matter ; establish 
rates on such matter not provided for in the act ; cause postage 
stamps and stamped envelopes to be prepared and issued ; make 
arrangements with British or foreign postal authorities, and for 
the refunding postage to military and naval authorities ; make 
regulations about money-orders and registration of letters, and 
other regulations, and amend or repeal the same ; sue for and 
recover postage and penalties ; establish and provide street 
letter-boxes in every city, town, or railway station ; grant 
licenses for the sale of stamps ; and impose penalties Avith con- 
sent of the governor in council. Such regulations have efiect 
from the day of their pul)lication in the "Canada Gazette," or 
such subsequent day as is stated therein. The governor was to 
appoint inspectors, for such districts as he might determine, to 
superintend the due performance of the mail service, the proper 
discharge of their duties by postmasters ; to inquire into the 
loss of letters, and generally to obey instructions of the post- 
master-general. The deputy postmaster-general had, under the 
postmaster-general, the general direction and supei-visiou of the 
business of the department. The officers and clerk^ of the 
department were to receive a stated salary, and no other allow- 
ance or remuneration for extra work. The postmaster-general 
could grant reasonable compensation to masters of ships — not 
post-office packets — for the conveyance of letters beyond the 
sea, and the governor in council could make regulations pro- 
hibiting such ships from breaking bulk at certain ports in 
Canada until such letters have been delivered. No one but 
the postmaster-general and officers under him could collect, 
convey, and deliver letters in Canada, under a penalty of twenty 
dollars, except letters sent by a private friend or by messenger 
sent on purpose about private affairs of sender or receiver. 
Documents relating to proceedings in court of justice ; letters 
addressed to a place out of Canada sent by sea and private ves- 
sel, or brought into Canada and there delivered at nearest 
post-office ; letters to consignees, etc., about cargo, goods, etc., 

/ 



402 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

and car lied without fee, or carried by other common carriers 
respecting goods, if they carried them without payment, were 
exempt, hut such letters could not be collected for the purpose 
of so sending them. No person was obliged to send newspapers 
or other printed matter by i;)ost. In cases of illegal sending 
letters could be seized and charged with postage by any revenue 
officer. The postmaster-general could establish branch offices 
in any city, and employ carriers to deliver letters and papers 
and receive not more than two cents each for such delivery, or 
could make the delivery free, charging one cent per half ounce 
on local or drop letters besides the drop-letter rate. He could 
make regulations and fix rates for a parcel post. Letters and 
other mailable matter addressed to or sent by the governor, or 
any department at the scat of government, or the speaker or 
chief clerk of the Senate or of the House of Commons, or a mem- 
ber of cither house at the seat of government, during the session 
of Parliament, or the ten days next before, were free. The 
speaker and chief clerk of either house could send public 
documents and printed papers to any member, and members 
could send documents printed by order of either house, free, at 
any time. Letters, etc., about post-office business could be 
sent free under regulations of the postmaster-general. Petitions 
and addresses to cither of the provincial Legislatures, and 
papers printed by their order, could be sent free under regu- 
lations of the postmaster-general. From the time mailable 
matter was posted, it became the property of the person to 
whom it was addressed. The postmaster-general was not liable 
for any such matter lost, nor could it be seized or detained by 
legal process while in the custody of the department. Any letters 
remaining undelivered and advertised, or which could not be 
forwarded, are sent as dead letters to the department, and there 
opened and returned to the senders, subject to any unpaid 
postage and five cents additional, or otherwise disposed of. 
Money in letters whose owner could not be found Avas carried 
into the postal revenue, but a special account kept of it, so that 
it could be paid over when the owner was found. The bill 
likewise provided for the details of the mail service at consider- 
able length. 

11. Public Works Department. An act respecting the 
public works of Canada constituted a department presided over 
by the minister of public works, who was to l)e appointed by the 
governor-general, who also appointed deputy, secretary, chief 
engineer, and such other officers as might be necessary. No 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 463 

contract or deed bound the depai-tment or government wLich 
was not signed and sealed by minister, or deputy and secretary. 
The governor might at any time require any person, corpora- 
tion, or provincial authority, to deliver up maps, plans, reports, 
etc., relating to public works under control of this department 
All works, records, and implements for improving the naviga- 
tion, all works for facilitating the transmission of timber, roads, 
bridges, public buildings and railways, the provincial steamers, 
and other property in hands of former jjrovincial governments, 
including the ordnance property transferred to Canada -and 
placed under the control of the public works department, was 
vested in her majesty, and under the control of the minister of 
public works, except those works, etc., ti-ansferred to the prov- 
inces, to municipalities, private companies, or other parties, or 
placed under the control of another department, or works aban- 
doned and left to the control of municipalities. The governor 
might, from time to time, by proclamation, declare any work 
purchased or constructed at public expense, and not transferred 
to the provinces, to be works under this act, and subject to the 
public works department. All public works thereafter con- 
structed or completed at expense of Canada must be under its 
control. No warrant for money voted for any public work 
could issue without certilicate of the minister of public works or 
his deputy. He could require accounts of contractors to bo 
attested by oath, and might send for and examine parties on 
oath respecting Inisiness of department. Annual report is to 
be made to governor and submitted to Parliament. Tenders 
were to be invited for all works, except in cases of pressing 
necessity. When it was deemed expedient that lowest tender 
should not be taken, case to be reported to governor and his 
authority obtained. SulEcicnt security in all cases to be taken, 
and no work to be begun or payment made till contract is duly 
executed. The minister of public works can authorize persons 
in employ of the department to enter upon any property, private 
or public, for the purposes of survey for public works. Survejs 
made by employe of the public works department should have 
same force and authority as if made by provincial land sur- 
veyor. The minister of public works might take possession of 
any property necessary for public work, and might acquire a 
good title from curators to parties incapable of contracting, 
which as between private parties would not be good. By his 
agents he might take Avood, sand, or other materials from any 
uncleared lands for public works, and open temporary roads to 



464 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

them, find might turn necessary drains upon private property, 
making duo compensation, such compensation to be paid within 
six months after it has been agreed upon or appraised, lict'ore 
taking possession of propert}^ the minister of public works miglit 
tender the reasonable value, and three days thereafter take the 
property. When owners were not residents on the property, 
he advertised his intention to take possession. He might alter 
the line of any public road, and remove fences and construct 
ditches during the time the work was going on, repairing the 
damage after its completion. The governor might appoint a 
board of arbitrators, to consist of not more than four members, 
to whom all claims for land or other property taken by the pub- 
lic works department, and for any damages done, and for any 
deductions from accounts for work, might be referred by the 
minister, after he had tendered what he conceived a sufficient 
compensation. He might refer them to one or more ; but the 
decision was subject to appeal to the board when not referred 
to the whole board. Claims had to be hied within twelve 
months after they arose. Works required for defence by gov- 
ernor in council, or declared to be public works, and claims for 
land taken for the same, or damage done, or enforcement of the 
obligation to keep ground free from obstructions, may be dealt 
with under this act ; which should not, however, diminish pow- 
ers already possessed by the secretary of state for war. The 
governor in council may, by order, impose tolls for the use of 
the public works, to be always payable in advance. Vessels 
running the rapids in the St. Lawrence were liable for dues as 
if they passed through the canals. Her majesty's troops were 
exempt from tolls, and horses and vehicles employed in her 
majesty's service ; but not vessels on canals conveying them. 
Collector might recover tolls in civil courts, and penalties were 
recoverable before a justice of the peace, and might be levied 
on goods and chattels, in default of which, offender might be 
committed to jail. Any goods on a vessel or vehicle seized for 
tolls, dues, or lines, were liable therefor, to whomsoever they 
belong. Tolls on public roads might be let out to farm, and 
farmer has the same right as to collection as collector. The 
governor in council might make regulations respecting manage- 
ment and use of public works, and impose lines for their infrac- 
tion not exceeding four hundred dollars, and authorize seizures 
and sales of property for payment of penalties or damages. 
The laws respecting railways and public works, theretofore in 
force in Ontario and Quebec, were extended to New Brunswick 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 465 

and Nova Scotia, so that any person breaking regulations of 
governor in council, or of a railway company, so as to cause 
an accident or increase the danger thereof, was punishable at 
the discretion of the court, by a tine of not more than four hun- 
dred dollars, or imprisonment not exceeding hvc jears, or both. 
If no such injury was done or danger caused, the penalty was 
fifteen or thirty days' pay. 

12. The foregoing summary gives the pith of a few of the 
laws enacted at the session of the Dominion Parliament opened 
on the Gth of November, 18G7, and adjourned on the 21st of 
December. Pursuant to adjournment, Parliament was reopened 
on the 12th of March, 18G8, and prorogued on the 22d of May, 
at which session other very important laws were enacted, of 
which the following is a summary of such as enter into the gov- 
ernment of the nation permanently : An act to secure the inde- 
pendence of Parliament was passed, which provided that no 
jierson was eligible, or could sit in the House of Commons, who 
held any ofhce of emolument under the government of Canada, 
except members of the privy council, or those holding any one 
of thirteen otfices then held by the privy councillors, except 
also one commissioner of the inter-colonial railway, and officers 
of the army, navy, or militia ; but stalf officers of the militia 
drawing regular salaries were also disqualified. Contractors 
with her majesty, or a department, with respect to the public 
service of Canada, or under which any money of Canada was 
to be paid, were disqualified, and their election was to be null 
and void, and if any such should sit and vote, each should for- 
feit two thousand dolhirs for each day. On accepting office or 
a contract from the government a member vacated his seat, but 
on accepting one of the thirteen cabinet offices he could be re- 
elected. This law was susceptible of a sweeping interpretation, 
and has recently given considerable trouble in the house. 

13» The Civil Service. A law was enacted providing for 
the organization of the civil service, but it did not generally 
apply to what is termed the "outside service" {i.e., servants 
away from the seat of government) , of the customs, post-office, 
inland revenue, and public works departments, which are placed 
under the special supervision of the separate departments. The 
departmental stalf consists of four classes, viz. : 1. Deputy (or 
permanent non-political) heads. 2. Officers or chief clerks. 
3. Clerks. 4. Probationary clerks. No one can be appointed 
to any situation younger than eighteen, nor older than twenty- 
five years. If an elder person be appointed for special capac- 



466 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

ity by the head of deiDartmeiit, he must lirst report the same 
to the governor in council for approval, and the candidate pass 
a special examination ; and if over forty the case must also 
be reported to Parliament. Ministers may appoint private sec- 
retaries, to receive not over six hundred dollars ; but they do 
not thereby become members of the civil service, and retire 
upon the retirement of the appointing minister. All appoint- 
ments and promotions are made by the governor in council, 
upon recommendation of the head of department. A candi- 
date must pass an examination before the civil service board, 
and produce satisfactory evidence as to his age, health, and 
character. He enters as a probationary clerk, at three hundred 
dollars per annum. At the end of a year he may be promoted 
to a clerkship, or he may, with an additional lifty dollars, be kept 
for a second year's probation. If tiien he do not show satistac- 
tory proof of capacity he nmst leave the service. Clerks are 
divided into three classes, first, second, and third. The third- 
class clerk receives four hundred dollars, Avith an increase of 
fifty dollars per annum up to six hundred and lifty dollars ; but 
he must serve not less than five years in that class. The second 
class is divided into two parts, junior and senior. The junior 
commences with seven hundred dollars, and rises by fifty dol- 
lars per annum to one thousand dollars, but must serve in that 
rank five years. The senior begins with one thousand dollars, 
with the same annual increase up to one thousand four hundred 
dollars, but is eligible at any time for promotion into the first 
class. The first clerk receives not less than one thousand two 
hundred dollars per annum, with the same annual increase up 
to one thousand cio;ht hundred dollars. A first-class clerk is 
alwaj's eligible for promotion. An officer or chief clerk receives 
such additional salary as may be fixed for their special duties 
by the governor in council. If he have no special duties, then 
four hundred dollars may be allotted to a first-class clerk, with 
rank of chief clerk. In each department one deputy Jiead is 
provided for, and two in that of the minister of finance, viz. : 
the auditor-general and the deputy inspector-general. They 
are appointed by commission under the great seal, and are paid 
such salaries as are fixed by the governor in council. They 
have, under their political heads, general control of their re- 
spective departments. In the absence of a deputy head, an 
officer or chief-clerk may be named to supply his place. The 
act likewise provides at great length for the details of the 
service. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 467 

14. Department of Justice. An act was passed provid- 
ing for a department of justice, with a minister of justice at its 
head, the minister to be ex-officio attorney-general, with duties 
and powers such as have l>eeii possessed by attorney-generals in 
England and in British America, relating to the administration 
of the laws confided to the government of the Dominion. A 
deputy and a full staif of clerks are provided. 

15; The Militia. The act passed in 18G8 creates a de- 
partment, and provides for the militia and defence of the 
Dominion. The command is vested in the queen, to be exer- 
cised by her representative. A department of militia is con- 
stituted, having control of all expenditures for militia or defence, 
with deputy, clerks, etc. The militia consists of all male 
British subjects between eighteen and sixty, who are to be called 
out to serve in the following order of classes, viz. : first class, 
eighteen to thirty, unmarried; second, from thirty to forty-five, 
unmarried ; third, eighteen to forty-five, married ; fourth, forty- 
five to sixty. Widowers without children rank as unmarried; 
with them, as married. It is also divided into the active and 
reserve. The active includes the volunteer, the regular, and 
the marine militia. The regular militia are those who voluntarily 
enlist to serve in the same, or men balloted, or in part of both. 
The marine militia is made up of persons whose usual occupa- 
tion is on sailing or steam craft navigating the waters of the 
Dominion. Volunteers are to serve for three years. Corps 
now (18G8) formed may continue under the new law. They 
were to be assembled l)efore the 1st of January, 1869, the terms 
of the act explained, and those who have not given notice for 
discharge sworn in anew. New volunteer corps may be accepted. 
Persons who have served three years continuously, and 
who apply for discharge on or after the 1st of October, 18G8, 
or have been duly discharged within a year previous thereto, 
after siich continuous service for the full term of their enlist- 
ment, are exempt from ballot for regulars until other classes 
are exhausted. Six months' notice for discharge is required. 
The regular and marine militia are to serve for two years, and 
thence until other men are taken in their stead. Having served 
two years and been discharged, they cannot again be enrolled 
until all the men of the first, second, and third classes in their 
company division have had their turn. Militia-men in the 
maritime provinces who have completed their term of ser- 
vice during the 3'ear ending 1st of October, 18G8, are in like 
manner exempt. Nine military divisions are provided for ; 



468 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

Nova Scotia to form one, New Brunswick one, Quebec three, 
and Ontario four. Her majesty may alter these, and may sub- 
divide into brigade, regimental, and company divisions. For 
each regiment there is to be appointed a lieutenant-colonel 
and two majors of reserve militia ; for each company a captain, 
lieutenant, and ensign. The company officers are to enrol the 
militia on or before the 28th of Februaiy, 1869, and in Feb- 
ruary in each subsequent year. Their rolls to be sent to the 
lieutenant-colonel, who makes up and sends regimental roll to the 
adjutant-general. Enrolment is embodiment. Judges, clei^'gy, 
men professors, teaching in religious orders, officers of the 
penitentiary, infirm persons, the only son of a widow and her 
support, are exempt from enrolment. Half-pay and retired 
officers, seafaring men, pilots, and apprentice pilots, -and teachers 
can only be called on to serve in Avar. Quakers and Tunkers 
may be exempted. All exemptions must be claimed and sup- 
ported by affidavit. The active militia to consist of cavalry, 
field artillery, mounted infantry, engineers, garrison artillery, 
infantry, and naval and marine corps. Horses may be enrolled. 
A military train, a medical staff, and commissariat and hospital 
and ambulance corps may be formed. Every active militia-man 
must siffn a roll and take the oath of allegiance. Volunteer 
corps may make regulations of their own, subject to ap- 
proval. Each company division must furnish its quota ac- 
cording: to the number on the rolls. It receives credit for 
every man volunteering or serving either in it or a contiguous 
regimental division. A volunteer corps disbanded must be 
replaced by ballot. When enough men do not volunteer, or 
when a vacancy occurs by death or otherwise, a ballot must be 
resorted to. Not more than one son in a family can be taken 
unless the number enrolled fall short. When a company has 
furnished more than its quota, it cannot again be called on for 
its full number till the others have furnished as many. A man 
drawn may be exempted 1)y providing a substitute, or paying 
thirty dollars to the captain ; but if his substitute is afterwards 
drawn, he must again supply his place. The governor in 
council may make regulations about enrolment and ballot. Any 
corps of actual militia ma}' be called out, on requisition of the 
mayor, warden, or two justices of the peace, by the deputy- 
adjutant-general or brigade-major of the district, or command- 
ing officer of corps, in aid of the civil power, and receive 
therefor — officers, the regular pay of army officers, and two 
dollars extra per diem for horse ; and private one dollar per 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 469 

day, and extra one dollar for horse. An adjutant-general is 
to be appointed who has attained the rank of stafF-officcr in the 
regular army, to have rank of colonel, and the military command 
and control of the discipline of the miUtia ; salary three thou- 
sand dollars per annum. There is to be a deputy adjutant-general 
at head-quarters, with salary of tw^o thousand two hundred 
dollars, and one in each military district w^ith one thousand 
two hundred dollars, — each to have rank of lieutenant-colonel. 
Such other staff-officers at such salary as the governor in council 
may appoint. Officers now (18(j8) holding rank in the militia 
may be put on the retired list with or without a step to those 
below a lieutenant-colonel. None can be called on to serve 
below his rank. No one can be appointed an officer of active 
militia (except provisionally) without a military-school or l)oard 
certiticate. Officers of the regular army may be exempted from 
this rule. No higher rank than lieutenant-colonel can be given in 
peace, except to the adjutant-general. In war, rank may go 
up as high as major-general. Relative rank of officers the same 
as in the army. Senior officers in uniform to command on 
parade or service, but substantive rank takes precedence of 
provisional, and army of militia. The clothing, arms, and 
accoutrements are to be such as prescribed by her majesty. 
Officers to furnish their own ; others to last for live years. 
Only to be used on duty. Any damage done to them to be re- 
covered from the captain, and by him from men, except fair 
wear and tear and unavoidable accident. Arms and accoutre- 
ments to be left in armory, or in charge of the commanding 
officer. Militia-men leaving Canada must deliver up uniforms, 
arms, and accoutrements in possession, and take acquittance, 
otherwise are liable for embezzlement. Forty thousand active 
mihtia-men are to be drilled each year. In regimental divisions, 
where there are volunteer corps, regular militia only sufficient 
to complete quota are to be drilled. The drills are not to be 
less than three hours per day, during not less than eight nor 
more than sixteen days per annum. Allowance, fifty cents per 
day, seventy-five cents extra per horse. Officers of the reserve 
militia may also be ordered out for drill. Occasional drills 
without pay are provided for. Her majesty may dispense with 
drills in certain cases and places. Inspections are provided for. 
Provision is made for rifle ranges at or near the head-quarters 
oT regimental divisions. The governor in council may, under 
regulations made in that behalf, aid the erection of drill-sheds 
and armories. Military schools may be established and 



4:70 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

carried on under regulations of the governor in council. Her 
majesty may order camps of instruction for military school men. 
She may sanction ritic and drill associations. Provision is 
made for military instruction in schools or colleges, and fur- 
nishing arms and accoutrements therefor. The officer com- 
manding a district may, in any emergency, call out the militia 
therein for service till her majesty's pleasure is known. Her 
majesty may call all out, in case of war, and may place them under 
the command of the commander of her majesty's regular forces. 
The period of service in war is one year, which may be ex- 
tended by six months. AVhen called out for actual service they 
are to receive the pay of the regular army, or such other as the 
governor in council may order. (Since lixed at lifty cents for 
privates, and non-commissioned olhcers in proportion, and free 
rations, or an allowance, in lieu thereof.) They are to be then 
sul)ject to the queen's regulations and articles of war. Flogging 
not allowed. Captains must keep accurate rolls, and lieutenant- 
colonel, or commanding officer of l)attalion, must sec that he 
does so. Any militia-man called out for service, and not attend- 
ing for seven days, may be punished as a deserter. Compen- 
sation is to be made to men disabled in service, and to the 
families of those killed. The governor in council may make 
regulations respecting the transport, cantoning, and billeting 
of militia on service. Provision is made for courts of inquiry 
and court-martials, with powers and modes of procedure like 
those of the regular army. Sentence of death may be pro- 
nounced only for "mutiny, desertion to the enemy, traitorously 
delivering up any gari'ison, fort, post, or guard, or traitorous 
correspondence with the enemy." Any officer Avho claims pay 
for drill by men not duly attested or belonging to his corps, or 
includes such person in a parade state, and any non-commis- 
sioned officer or private claiming, or taking pay for drill not 
performed with his own corps, is guilty of misdemeanor, and is 
also liable to court-martial. Any officer or non-commissioned 
officer retaining pay of men is guilty of misdemeanor, and is to 
be dismissed from the service ; or if he sign a false parade 
state roll or pay-list he is punishable for misdemeanor, and like- 
wise by court-martial. Any person refusing to give information 
required under this act, or givingfalse information, forfeits twenty 
dollars for each item. Every officer refusing to make the roll 
forfeits fifty dollars, and non-commissioned officer, twenty-five 
dollars. Every militia-man refusins: to take the oath, when 
drafted, may be imprisoned for six months, and twelve months 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 471 

more for each subsequent refusal to do so. Personating another 
person on parade is a misdemeanor punishable by a line of one 
hundred dollars. Persons incur a fine of ten dollars if an officer, 
and live dolhirs if a private, etc., for refusing to attend drill. 
Of live dolhirs for interrupting drill, and may be taken into cus- 
tody till drill is over; of twenty dollars for officer, and ten 
dollars for private, etc., for insolent or disorderly behavior 
towards superior officer ; of four dollars for failing to keep 
arms and accoutrements in good order ; and of twenty dollars 
for disposing of any articles served out, besides any greater 
punishment which the law may prescribe. Refusing to turn out 
to aid civil power, forty dollars for officer, twenty dollars for 
private, etc. Resisting draft, or dissuading militia-man from 
performance of his duty, one hundred dollars, or six months' 
imprisonment. Penalties are recoveral)le before a justice of the 
peace on complaint of the adjutant-general or officer acting for 
him, against officers, and of oihcer commanding battalion or com- 
pany or adjutant against men, in the district or county Avhere 
the oftence is committed. Notice or orders need not be in Avrit- 
ing. General orders are sufficiently notified by publication in 
"Canada Gazette;" regimental orders by publication in local 
paper, or posting at place of w^orship, or other public place in 
each company division. 

IG. Secretary of State. This act, provided for the estab- 
lishment of the department of the secretary of state of Canada, 
who, under the oriinnal bill, should also be register-s^eneral and 
superintendent of Indian affiiirs. It provided that all Indian 
moneys in all the provinces w^ere to be paid to the receiver-gen- 
eral, etc. That no transfer of Indian lands should be valid 
without the consent of the council of the tribe, given in pres- 
ence of the secretary, or some one deputed l)y him, or the gov- 
ernor in council, to attend. No intoxicating liquors could be 
introduced or used at such meeting. The penalty for selling or 
giving intoxicating liquors at any time to an Indian, except in 
case of illness, and then by order of a physician or clergyman, 
was twenty dollars for each oflV^nce. Things pawned for liquor 
by an Indian could not be kept. Presents from government 
were not liable to seizure for clebt. To l)e within the act and 
hold property with a tribe, a person must be of Indian blood, 
reputed to belong to the tribe, or must reside among them, 
having some Indian blood, or must be a woman lawfully married 
to a person of one of the above classes, or be the offspring issue 
of such marriage of descendants of such offspring. None but such 



472 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

persons could settle on Indian lands ; 'and unauthorized persons 
might be removed by AYarrant from the secretary, or liis agent, 
and might be arrested and imprisoned if they returned. The 
road-work on such lands was to he performed under tlic orders of 
the secretiuy. Persons cutting timber, or removing stone from 
Indian lands, without license from the secretary, or his agent, 
incurred a penalty of four dollars if the thing removed was 
under the value of one dollar; if over, twenty dollars. The 
secretary was to act for Indians in obtaining compensation for 
land taken, or damage done, by a railway or public work. The 
governor in council might authorize surveys, and might make 
regulations about the protection and management of Indian 
lands, and the timber on them, imposiu-g tines for breach of 
them. The secretary also had Iho management of the ordinance 
lands, and of any other crown lands belonging to the Dominion 
and not under the control of the public works. The governor 
might appoint agents to carry out the act. The governor in 
council might assign any part of these duties of the secretary 
to any other member of the privy council. 

17. Customs Department. An act was passed creating a 
department of customs, with a minister, and a commissioner as 
his deputy, and assistant commissioner. It authorized a board 
of examiners, and special examinations for those to be employed 
in the department. It provided for all the details of the de- 
partment, which is very extensive. Laws were also passed 
relating to the currency, establishing a department of inland 
revenue, also a department of marine and lishcries, and pro- 
viding harbor police, a quarantine, hospitals for sick mariners, 
steamboat inspection, naturalization of aliens, geological survey, 
railways ; also an act Avas passed in relation to treason, riots, 
forgery, perjury, felony ; also providing for police commis- 
sioners, penitentiaries, and a great number of private and local 
acts. 

18. At the close of 18G8 the population of the four prov- 
inces of the Dominion was estimated at nearly four millions. 
There had been since 18G1 a considerable emigration to the 
United States, but this had been considerably counterbalanced 
by a large emigration thence to Canada. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 473 



, CHAPTER XXXVIII. 

THE DOMINION OF CA-^AB A— (continued). 

FKOM 18G8 to 1873 — GOVERNSIENT of lord HSGAR — MANITOBA AND BRITISH 

COLUMBIA. 

1. Lord Monck was succeeded, in 1868, by Lord Lisgar, 
the Right Hon. Sir John Young, Baron Lisgar, P.C, 
G.C.B.,G.C.M.G. Sir John A. Macdonald still remained at 
the head of the ministry, but with the following cabinet : — 

The Hon Sir John Alexander Macdoxald, K.C.B., Minister of Justice 

and Attorney-General. 
The Hon Sir George Etiexxe Cartier, Bart., Minister of Militia and 

Defence. 
The Hon. Samuel Leonard Tilley, C.B., Minister of Customs. 
The Hon. Sir Francis Hixcks, K.C.M.G., Minister of Finance. 
The Hon. Hector Louis Lang^vin, C.B., Minister of Public Works. 
The Hon. Alexander Morris, Minister of inland Uevenue. 
The Hon. Jos. Howe, Secretary of State for the Frovinces. 
The Hon. Edward Kexxy, President of the Privy Council. 
The Hon. Peter Mitchell, 'Minister of Marine and Fisheries. 
The Hon. Alexaxder Campbell, Postmaster-General. 
The Hon. Christopher Duxcax, Minister of Agricultui-e and Statistics. 
The Hon. James Cox Aikixs, Secretary of State of Canada. 
The Hon. Jeax Charles Chapais, Receiver-General. 

The following members of the Privy Council were without 
office: Hon. Sir A. T. Gait, K.C M.G. Hon. Sir John Rose, 
Hon. Adam G. Archibald, Hon.W. P. Rowland, C.B. Parlia- 
ment met on the L5th of April, 1809, and Avas prorogued on 
the 22d eTunc, after a busy and important session. The following 
is a summary of some of the most important acts passed ; — 

2. Nova Scotia. This bill enacted that the permitted debt 
of Nova Scotia at the union was nine million one hundred and 
eighty six thousand dollars, interest being chargeable to her 
on any excess, and payable to her on any amount by which it is 
less than that sum. She was to receive for ten years, from the 
1st of July, 18G7, eighty-two thousand six hundred and ninety- 
eight dollars annually, in addition to payments under the 
British North American Act. She was debited in account with 
Canada for live per cent, upon the cost of the provincial build- 



474 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 




LOKD LISG.VR. 



ing until it should be i)laeed at the disposal of the Dominion. 
All sums were pa3-al)lc in currency of Old Canada. This 
was in full settlement of all demands of is^ova Scotia upon 
Canada. 

3. NoRTii-AYEST. This hill provided for the temporary 
government of these territories, to be known, when acquired, 

as the North-west Territory'. 
It authorized the ajjpointment 
of a lieutenant-governor, Avho, 
under direction of orders of the 
governor in council, was to pro- 
vide for the administration of 
justice there, and peace, order, 
and good government of her 
majesty's subjects and others. 
The governor in council might 
also appoint seven to lifteen 
councillors to aid the lieutenant- 
governor. All laws in force 
there not inconsistent with the 
British North American Act, 
this act, or the terms of admissions, were to remain in force 
till altci"ed or repealed. All public officers there, except the 
chief, were to continue in office till others w^ere appointed. 

4. Department or Finance. This act provided for a de- 
partment of fmance, with the auditor-general and deputy in- 
spector-general as deputy heads. The audit board was 
subordinate to it. The governor in council and minister of 
linance were given j^ower to distribute the work among the 
employes and branches of the department. Provision was also 
made, for a committee of council to bo called the treasury board, 
and to consist of the minister of fmance, the receiver-general, 
the minister of customs, and minister of internal revenue, to 
consider all matters of accounts or linance submitted to it by 
council, or Avhich they deemed necessary to bring under its 
notice. The secretary of the board may or may not hold another 
office in the civil service. 

5. I:.i?.iiGRATiON AND IMMIGRANTS. — This act rccitcd and 
coniirmcd the agreement entered into between the Canadian 
government and the jirovincial governments of Ontario, Quebec, 
and Nov/ Erimsv/ick, by which the first maintained agencies in 
London, and elsewhere in Europe, and at Quebec, IMontreal, 
Kingston, Toronto, Hamilton, Ottawa, Halifax, and St. John, 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 475 

N.B., and quarantine stations at Grosse Isle, St. John, and 
Halifax ; it provided that the latter should appoint to such 
agencies as they see fit in Europe and in their own provinces, 
and furnish the department of agriculture and immigration, and 
agents abroad, with full information respecting their policy of 
settlement, etc. Under the law Donn'nion agents could receive 
and expend any moneys furnished by any province upon the 
care and forwarding of immigrants to such province. Masters 
of vessels were to pay one dollar a head upon all immigrants 
over one year of age brought into the countiy with the sanction 
of the government of the country whence they came ; one dollar 
and tifty cents on those brought in without such sanction. The 
law also regulated the manner in which immigrants should be 
brought out, providing for their safety and comfort. 

6. Patents for Inventions. This act provided for a patent 
office presided over l)y the ministerof agriculture and statistics, and 
made a branch of his department, he becoming conunissioner of 
jjatents. It has a seal which all judges and courts will recognize as 
evidence. He makes rules, with the approval of the governor in 
council, to carry the act into eft'ect, notice being given in the 
" Canada Gazette." Proceedings under this act are reported an- 
nually. Any person having been a resident in Canada for one 
year next before his application, and having invented or dis- 
covered any new or useful art, machine, manufacture, or com- 
position of matter, or improvement thereof, not known or used 
by others before his invention or discovery, or not being in 
public use or on sale in any province of the Dominion, with con- 
sent of the inventor, may procure a patent therefor; but no 
patent shall issue for an invention or discovery having an illicit 
object, or for a mere scicntilic principle or abstract theorem. 
A foreign patent, taken not more than six months before, does 
not disqualify from obtaining the Canadian. An inventor or 
discoverer qualitied, as above, may tyansfer or bequeath his 
right, and his representative take out the patent. A patent for 
an improvement of a thing already patented does not give the 
right to make or vend such article, nor to the original patentee 
to make or sell the article with the improvement. The applicant 
must make oath to the residence, and his belief that he is the 
original and true inventor or discoverer, before a justice of the 
peace in Canada, or before a British minister, consul, etc., or a 
judge abroad. He must, in his petition, elect a domicile in 
Canada, and state the place or places wherein, for the year, he 
was a resident m Canada. He must set up the title of his in- 



476 HISTORY OP DOMINION OF CANADA, 

vention, etc., with a short description, and allege all facts neces- 
sary to entitle him. to a patent in his petition, and with it must 
send a written specification, in duplicate, describing his inven- 
tion in such full and exact terms as to distinguish it from all 
other similar contrivances or processes. The law also provided 
for the details of the office, duration of patents, etc. 

7. Coinage Offences. The act provided that counter- 
feiting current gold or silver coin was punishable by imprison- 
ment for life, or any lesser period. Coloring coins or metals, 
with intent to pass them as genuine coin, or manufacture them 
to be so passed, or to make genuine coin pass for coin of a 
higher value, the same. Impairing or lightening coin, fourteen 
years or any less time. Filing or clipping it, seven years. 
Buying or selhng counterfeit coin for less than its apparent 
value, for life. Importing it, the same. Exporting it, less 
than two years. Uttering it, fourteen years. Passing light 
coin, one year. Possessing counterfeit coin, three years. Sub- 
sequent offences, felony, for life. Uttering foreign coin, 
medals, etc., as current coin, one year. Defacing coin by 
stamping words thereon, one year. A tender of coin so defaced 
is not legal, and uttering it is punishable by ten dollars line, 
if the attorney-general consents to the prosecution. Counter- 
feiting foreign gold or silver coin not current in Canada, seven 
years. Bringing such coin into Canada, the same. Uttering 
it, six months. Second offence, two years. Any subsequent 
oft'ence, seven years. Having it in possession, three years. 
Counterfeiting foreign coin other than gold or silver, one year. 
Second offence, seven years. Making, mending, or having 
unlawfully in possession coining tools, felony for life. Convey- 
ing the same out of her majesty's mints into Canada, for life. 
Suspected coin may be cut or otherwise tested by any person 
to w^hom it is tendered. If genuine, he bears any loss ; if not, 
the tenderer. Revenue officers must cut, break, or deface all 
light coin coming into their possession. Any person finding 
counterfeit coin, or materials, machines, or tools for coining, or 
filings, or chippings, or dust from lightened coin, might at once 
seize them, and take them before a justice of the peace, or a 
justice of the peace may issue his warrant to seize the same by 
day or night. When no longer needed for evidence, such 
coin or tools, etc., are to be defaced, broken, or destroyed. 
The coin to be cut or broken in open court or before a justice 
of the peace. Where offences have been committed in two 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 477 

provinces, districts, or counties within ten clays by the same 
person or l)y confederates, proceedings may be taken in either 
of them for the whole. Tlie evidence of a surveyor or officer 
of the mint is not necessary to prove a coin counterfeit ; that 
of any other creditable witness is sufficient. Difierences of 
date between the true coin and counterfeit is not a ground for 
acquittal. The oifence is complete, though the counterfeit coin 
made or uttered is not finished. Any person may arrest and 
deliver to a peace officer any one guilty of an oifence under, 
this act. A person convicted of a misdemeanor may be fined 
and ordered to find sureties to keep the peace and be of good 
behavior, instead of any other penalty ; if convicted of felony, 
may be ordered to find sureties in addition thereto, but no one 
can be detained more than one year for the failure to find sure- 
ties. Laws were also passed for the punishment of forge rj^ 
injuries to the person, larceny, injury to property, perjury, and 
a long list of other offences. A very lengthy act relating to 
the duties of justices, summary convictions, etc., was also 
passed at this session, besides a vast number of local and 
private acts. 

8. In 1869-70 Qmfcderation had already greatly increased 
the importance of British North America in the eyes of the 
whole world. The best evidence of this fact was to be found 
in the augmented flow of inmiigration to our shores. It is 
estimated that twenty-five thousand immigrants settled in the 
different provinces during 1870. This is a marked increase 
over previous years, and indicates that since the union we have 
received, as we deserve, increased attention from foreign coun- 
tries. But there were comparatively few abroad, — and not so 
very many even among ourselves, — who fully appreciated the 
vast extent of our territory, the amplitude of our resources, the 
general excellence of our institutions, and the important future 
which, with anything like wise statesmanship on the part of 
our rulers, is certainly in store for this country. With the 
single exception of Russia, the Dominion of Canada embraces 
the largest area of territory of any country in the world. This 
may surprise those who have not closely examined their maps, 
but it is borne out by facts. Our neighbors, the people of 
the United States, who sometimes speak as if the whole con- 
tinent were theirs, have to take a secondary place to the 
Dominion when boundaries come to be discussed. The Do- 
nrinion territory, even in 1870, was as follows : — 



478 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

Pj-ovince of Ontario 121,260 square miles. 

Quebec 210,020 

" Nova Scotia 18,GG0 " 

" New Brunswick .... 27,105 " 

Manitoba 13,000 

Northwest Territories, say 2,737,000 

Total area 2,127,045 

9. Adding to these figures the area of British Columbia, 
which was afterwards admitted, 220,000 square miles, and 
Prince Edward Island 2,100, we find the full size of the 
Dominion of Canada to be no less than 3,349,045 square miles ! 
Counting these important provinces as part of the Dominion, — 
as they now are, — it occupies, in point of size, the second 
place among the nations, as will be seen by the following state- 
ment of the areas of the ten largest countries : — 

Russia 7,012,874 square miles. 

Dominion of Canada 3,127,041 " 

Brazil 2,408,104 

United States 2,999,848 

Australian Colonies 2,582,070 

Turkey 1,812,048 

China 1,297,999 

Mexico 1,030,442 

British India 933,722 

Argentine Confederation . . . . . 842,789 " 

10. Much of our enormous territory, it must be frankly ad- 
mitted, is unavailable. We have our Siberia, over portions of 
which the foot of civilized man has never trodden, and which, 
from its coldness and sterility, will never be fruitful or habit- 
able. But, after making due allowance for these inhospitable 
regions, the Dominion still embraces an area of fertile territory 
sutficiently large, with resources sufficiently varied and inex- 
haustible, to be able to furnish homes for at least 100,000,000 
of the human race. The natural resources of the Dominion are 
abundant and varied. Prominent among these are our forests, 
which, for extent, wealth, and beauty, are unmatched. It is 
estimated that the timber districts in the valleys of the Sague- 
nay, St. Maurice, Ottawa, Trent, and on the shores of Huron 
and Superior — all in the provinces of Ontario and Quebec — 
cover no less than 297,711 square miles. As regards the wealth 
of our forests, statistics have set down the annual value of 
the lumber and timber produced by the whole Dominion at 
$30,000,000. This estimate is in all probability below the mark, 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 479 

for our exports of lumber, in 18G8-9 alone, amounted to 
$19,838,963, which would leave only a little over $11,000,000 
worth for our entire home consumption. Beauty is but a 
secondary consideration ; but w^c may be pardoned for mention- 
ing it, when poets have sung the glories of Canadian Avoods, 
and beggared language to depict the gorgeous coloring of the 
dying foliage. Of our agricultural capabilities the extent ol 
our annual exports afford satisfactory evidence. The farming 
lands of Nova Scotia and New" Brunswick are much like those 
of the New England States ; those of Ontario produce crops 
second to none on the continent, and the extensive prairies of the 
North-west are now known to l)e unsurpassed for depth and rich- 
ness of soil. The fisheries of the Dominion come next in impor- 
tance. Both our deep sea and fluvial fisheries are valuable ; the 
former, which lie along the coasts of the maritime provinces, are 
admittedly superior to all others, and furnish this invaluable 
article of food to a large portion of Western Europe as well as 
America. We have no means of estimating the quantity taken 
annually by French iishermen ; but Mr. F. II. Derby, an ex- 
cellent authorit}^ estimated the catch of cod and mackerel by 
New England fishermen at $12,000,000 a few years ago, three- 
fourths of which were taken in our waters. Our annual 
exports of produce of the fisheries (including Newfoundland, 
which contributes the most) amount to nearly $9,000,000, and 
the home consumption may be set down at $3,000,000 more. 
They gave employment to about 50,000 fishermen and 15,000 
vessels and boats. This portion of the Dominion's resources 
exhibits no signs of exhaustion, and now that restrictions have 
been placed on the fishing of foreigners, must speedily increase 
in value and productiveness. Our mineral wealth is abundant. 
It lies scattered over every portion of our territory, inviting 
development. In the maritime provinces, coal, iron, and gold 
mines are regularly and successfully worked ; Ontario and 
Quebec possess iron, copper, silver and gold in paying quanti- 
ties ; in the north-west territories there are coal measures said 
to be largo enough to supply the whole of America for ages ; 
and if Ave Avere to cast our eyes across the Rocky Mountains to 
our Pacific provinces, we might see the noble Eraser river 
"coursing over 800 miles of its golden bed, and cutting in 
twain mountains of sih^er and copper and iron." The annual 
produce of our inines now (18G9) falls little short of $2,500,- 
00), but this affords little indication of the ample field Avhich 



480 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

our mineral resources offer to capital and labor. The past 
progress of the Dominion in -wealth and population has been 
satisfactory. In 1867 a well-informed statistician estimated 
the realized wealth of British America, exclusive of railways, 
canals, public buildings, etc., at $1,136,000,000. It is be- 
lieved this is now (1869), at least, considerably beneath the 
mark. The gross property of Great Britain in 1868-9 was 
estimated by Mr. E. Dudley Baxter to be worth $30,000,000,- 
000, which gives nearly $1,000 to each individual, and Mr. 
David A. Wells estimates that of the United States at 
$23,400,000,000 currency, or $600 for each person. Al- 
lowing only $200 to each person, and taking our popula- 
tion to be 4,283,103, — which is the estimated number at 
January, 1871, — the total realized property of the Dominion 
would be $1,713,241,200. As the evidence of the rapid accu- 
mulation of wealth we may refer to the returns of our mone- 
tary institutions. Their business has greatly increased of late 
years. In the hands of building societies there are now fully 
$6,000,000, and the deposits in the government and other 
sa-vings-banks, principally the earnings of the poorer classes, 
are about $7,000,000. The deposits in the banks of Ontario 
and Quebec have trebled — increased 200 per cent. — since 
1860! 

11. The following remarks on the industries and resources 
of Canada is from a paper written by James Young, Esq., M.P. 
of Gait, Ont., in 1870, and to be of interest to the reader its 
date must be constantly borne in mind : — 

The population of the Dominion is lar<2;er than was the population of the 
United States when they asserted and achieved their independence. Their 
numbers were then about 3,000,000 ; the inhabitants of the provinces, if 
the rate of increase during this decade has equalled the last, numbered 
4,149,959 at the beginning of 1870, and will be 4,283,103 by the first of 
January, 1871. The population of the whole of Uritish America is calcu- 
lated to he 4,701,369, and, if the past rate of increase be maintained, it will 
be 6,441,000 in 1881 ; 8,825,000 iu 1891, and 12,000,000 by the close of the 
century. If we turn to the records of our annual commerce, we find no 
evidence of dulness or stagnation, but cheering signs of progress. Noth- 
ing more surely indicates the true condition of a country than its trade 
returns, and Canada has no cause to fear such a test ; indeed, when numbers 
are considered, we have some reason to feel proud of the extent to which 
our commerce with foreign countries has swollen. Confirmation of this will 
be found in the following statement of our total trade (both imports and 
exports), during each year since 1850, the figui-es being those of Ontario 
and Quebec alone up to the date of confederation, after which those of Nova 
Scotia and New Brunswick are included : — 





ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 


481 


Tear. 


Total Trade. 


Year. 


Total Trade. 


1850 . 


. $29,703,497 


1860 . 


. $68,9.55,093 


1851 . 


. 34,805,461 


1861 . 


. 76,119,843 


1852 . 


. 35,594,100 


1862 . 


. 79,398,067 


1853 . 


. 55,782,739 


1863 . 


. 81,458,335 


1854 . 


. 63,548,515 


1864 t year . 


. 34,586,054 


1855 . 


. 64,274,630 


1864-5. 


. 80,644,951 


1856 . 


. 75,631,404 


1865-6 . 


. 96,479,738 


1857 . 


. 66,437,222 


1866-7 . 


. 94,791,860 


1858 . 


. 52,550,461 


1867-8 . 


. 119,797,879 


1859 . 


. 58,299,242 


1868-9 . 


. 119,411,514 



It will be observed by these statistics that the volume of our annual 
trade increased from $29,000,000 in 1850, to $68,000,000 in 1860, — more 
than doubled in ten j'eai's, and has nearly doubled again since 1860, having 
amounted to $119,411,514, in 1868-69. Adding on the amount of coin and 
bullion imported and exported (which is excluded from all the above 
returns), the gross tran>sactions of the Dominion in 1869 were over 
$127,000,000. Few countries possess better means of transportation, both 
by water and by rail. The heart of the Dominion rests in the lap of the 
finest fresh-water lakes on the globe, whose great outlet, the St. Lawrence, 
passes with majestic flow through our territory to the ocean ; the north-west 
contains numerous lakes and rivers not less grand and beautiful, if at pres- 
ent less known and api^reciated ; whilst the front of the Dominion rests on 
the Atlantic, whence our fleets sail into every navigable sea. The natural 
navigation has been improved by an elaborate and efficient canal system, 
whose aggregate length is two hundred and twenty-seven miles, and whose 
construction cost close upon $20,000,000. When the projected enlargement 
of these canals is carried out, the St. Lawrence must become the chief high- 
way for the products of the great West to reach the ocean, and it requires 
no effort of imagination to picture the time when the immense in'oductiou of 
the interior will crowd every avenue of transportation, and the sparkling 
waters of this noble river will be whitened with sails. Our railway lacilities 
are abundant. AVith the exception of the American Pacific, we can boast, we 
believe, of possessing the longest single line of railroad, and we are 
acquainted with no country so sparsely populated wdiich has exhibited 
greater enterprise in the construction of these useful works. 

In referring to the proposed Canadian Pacific Railroad, we may state 
that if ever any considerable portion of the trade of Western Europe with 
India, China, Japan, and other Oriental lands, can be carried on across the 
American continent, it must be through our territory. The writer con- 
fesses, however, to some scepticism in regard to so great a change in the 
course of Eastern trade, j^articularly since the great work of M. De Lesseps, 
the Suez Canal, has become an accomplished fact. But Lord Bury said in 
England, some years ago: " Our trade in the Pacific Ocean, with China 
and with India, must ultimately be carried on through our American pos- 
sessions ; " and the late D'Arcy McGee, more than once during his more 
eloquent utterances, pictured the productions of the Orient passing across 
this continent through British territory to Europe. Should such hopes be 
realized, and a revolution take place in the course of Oriental trade, the 
advantages which a Canadian Pacific Railroad would have over American 
lines are undoubted. The most obvious advantage would be a saving of at 
least five hundred miles in distance. The following is the estimated distance 
by each route from Liverpool to the Pacific Ocean : — 



482 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

American Pacific Route. 

From Liverpool to Now York .... '2,980 miles 
'* i^ew York to San Francisco . . . 3,300 " 



Total number of miles . . . 6,280 " 

Caiiada Pacific Poute. 

From Liverpool to Montreal .... 2,740 miles 

" Montreal to Tiumder Bay . . . 1,030 " 

" Thunder Bay to mouth of Fraser river . 1,979 " 



Total number of miles . . . 5,749 " 

These figures show a difference of five hundred and thirty-one miles, but 
besides this all-important advantage, our route ])ossesses several others 
which, it is believed, Avould secure it the preference. These are as follows : 
1st, the western country through Avhich the Canadian Pacific Railway 
would pass, is rich and lertile ; for a long distance the American road runs 
through a desert ; 2d, the passes in the Rocky Mountains in our territory 
are over eleven hundred feet lower than those our neighbors have to 
climb over; 3d, above the fortieth parallel the snow-fall near these moun- 
tains is comjjaratively trifling, seldom more than ten inches ; the Americans 
have had to erect some twenty miles of sheds to prevent their trains being 
buried in avalanches of snow ; and last, but not least, we have abundance 
of cheap coal, both in the Red-river country and British Columbia, — 
whilst our neighboi'S have no suitable coal for steam purposes within 
hundreds of miles of the Pacific slope, and the line of steamers now 
running between San Francisco and the East cannot start upon their 
voyage until they have sent seven hundred and eighty miles, to Nan- 
aimo, in British Columbia, for the coal necessary to keej) their engines 
Avorking. In case of close competition, these circumstances must inevita- 
bly give superiority to the Canadian Pacific route. The Dominion of 
Canada possesses one element of national strength and prosperity which 
has attracted marked attention among foreign nations, but the importance 
of which is probably not fully realized by many among ourselves. We 
refer to our maritime power. During the great debate in Parliament on 
confederation something was said about British America becoming "the 
fourth maritime power in the world ; " but how few have fully realized the 
importance of the fact that, with the exception of Great Britain, the United 
States, and France, this country possesses a larger tonnage of inland and 
sea-going vessels than any other jjower in the world. The following sta-^ 
tistics of the princip.al merchant natives are taken from the *' Statesman's 
Year Book," for 1870, and prove the justness of our claim to rank fourth 
in the list : — 

Countries. 

Great Britain .... 
United States .... 

France 

Dominion of Canada 

Italy 

Norway 

Prussia 

Spain ..... 



Number of Craft. 


Number of Tons. 


22,250 


6,516,434 


23,118 


4,318.309 


15,637 


1,042,811 


7,591 


899,096 


17,788 


815,521 


6,215 


795,876 


1,460 


406,612 


4,840 


867,790 



Number of Craft. 


Number of Tons. 


2,117 


267,596 


7,830 


321,415 


2,192 


180,992 


3,132 


175,554 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 483 

CountrieB. 

Netherlands . 
Austria .... 
Kussia . . . , 
Denmark 

The number of fishermen antl other seamen in the various provinces, 
according to the census of 1871, was 69,256. There cannot, therefore, be 
less than 75,000 persons, besides their families, dejiendent for their living 
on the deep, and who, in times of trial, would be found a strong arm of 
defence. In ship-building we have heretofore taken a i>rominent place. 
In a single year our ship-yards have turned out six hundred and twenty- 
eight vessels of all sizes, weighing in the aggregate 230,312 tons, and of 
which we sold to the value of $9,000,000 in gold. From various causes 
this industry has not been so prosperous of late years, but, having abun- 
dance of timber, and cheap means of jn'oduction, we do not despair to see 
it revive. 

Not the least of the attractions of the Dominion are the moderate cost 
of living and low rate of taxation. Whatever may be the material, intel- 
lectual, or social advantages of a country, if the people are oppressed with 
financial or other burdens, these advantages might as well not exist so far 
as the masses are concerned, for they can only be enjoyeil by the opulent 
few. But Ave know not where to find a country in whicli the necessaries 
of life are cheaper, or the fiscal burdens press more lightly upon the com- 
munity. 

On the 30tli of April, 1870, the net amount of the public debt of Canada 
was $77,432,961, and if we add the surplus debt to be assumed by the 
provinces of Ontario and Quebec, $10,937,976, we find the gross amount 
to be $88,370,937. Without wishing to undeiTate this sum, or detract in 
the slightest degree from the conclusive arguments in favor of keeping our 
indebtedness within the smallest possible compass, still the amount cannot 
be considered heavy when compared with the public debts of other coun- 
tries. For the purpose of comparison, we appentl the following statement 
of indebtedness of some of the principal nations, and all of the Australian 
colonies. It was prepareil by an American writer, and is sufficiently near 
correct for our present purpose : — 

Countries. 

Great Britain 

United States 

France .... 

Austria .... 

Italy .... 

Belgium 

Spain .... 

Prussia (old) 

Russia .... 

Peru .... 

Brazil .... 

Canada .... 

New South Wales 

New Zealand 

Queensland . 

South Australia 

Tasmania 

Victoria 



Total Debt. 


Annual Interest. 


Int. per Ilead. 


53,753,420,000 


$125,840,00 


$4.28 


2,453,559,735 


130,694,242 


3.75 


2,613,000,000 


121,000,000 


3.16 


1,210.000.000 


63,920,000 


1.96 


1,094,040,000 


82,280,000 


3.70 


135,520,000 


7,260,000 


1.42 


793,760,000 


19,360,000 


1.14 


285,560,000 


9,680,000 


0.36 


1,282,600,000 


53,240,000 


0.70 


104,000,000 


9.680,000 


3.46 


110,160,000 


9,680,000 


0.98' 


72,600,000 


3,630,000 


0.98 


29,040,000 


1,306,800 


3.16 


24,200,000 


1,210,000 


5.98 


7,260,000 


435,600 


4.94 


3,872,000 


33,800 


2.14 


2,420,000 


145,200 


1.48 


43,500,000 


1,790,800 


3.06 



484 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

The calculations for Canada in the above table were based on the returns 
of 1867, and are now, of course, a little below the mark. As we have 
already seen, the net amount of the Dominion debt, as furnished by Mr. 
Langton, is (in round numbers) $77,000,000, and the gross amount, 
$10,000,000 more ; to pay the interest on tlie former requires about $1.04 
per head, and on the latter sum, $1.17. For the purpose of comparison 
with other countries, the net debt and interest are the proper figures to 
take, and when these are placed beside the obligations of other countries 
the contrast is not unfavorable to us. 

The pressure of the indebtedness of a country cannot be correctly ascer- 
tahied unless its assets, and the ability of its people to pay, are taken into 
account. We may mention, however, that whilst it would take about $122 
to pay off the public debt of Great Britain, $73 from the people of France, 
and $64: for our neighbors in the United States, it would require less than 
$25 for each person to enable us to set every creditor at defiance. Turning 
to the Australian colonies, a good authority contains statistics which show 
that it would take $77 per head from each inhabitant to liquidate the in- 
delatedness of New South AVales, $90 that of Victoria, and no less than 
$173 that of New Zealand I This indebtedness appears to be enormous; 
but it must be remembered that the position of these splendid colonies is 
at present abnormal. AVith small populations, they have invested largely 
in railroads ; these return interest upon the capital emi)loyed, but have been 
constructed moi-e with a view to the future than the pi-esent. After making 
due allowance for these considerations, however, the linancial bui'dens of 
the Dominion, when comjjared with theirs, appear to be light and trifling. 

The last published government returns estimate the annual taxation of 
the people of Canada, for Dominion purposes, to be $3. .53 per head. At 
the present time it must be a trifle more. Our annual revenuvO is now 
about $15,000,000. If we divide this amount among four millions of 
inhabitants, the contribution required from each jierson would be $3.75. 
This rate must be considei-ed under rate. In Great Britain the revenue 
collected averages a little over $11, in France a trifle over $10, and in the 
United States — with which the comparison is more just — the average for 
each individual fell last year to within a fraction of $9.50. This does not, 
however, include the State taxation of our neighbors, to which we have 
nothing analogous. In New Yoi'k the State tax runs about $1.60, which 
would make fhe yearly taxation of the people of that State $11.10 as com- 
pared with $3.75 in this country. 

Among twenty-eight difl'erent nations, Avliose statistics have been ex- 
amined, only Brazil, Norway, Sweden, Turkej^ and Switzerland contrib- 
uted less revenue per head than the j^eople of the Dominion, and, when 
ability to pay is considered, our burdens may be said to be lighter than 
theirs. Under these circumstances this country can justly claim — and, it 
is to be hoped, will long continue — to be one of the most lightly taxed 
communities in the world. 

Of the institutions of the Doininion — political, scholastic, and relig- 
ious, there is no necessity to say much. Though doubtless ca,pable 
of improvement, few countries possess better, or enjoy a larger meas- 
ure of civil and religious libei'ty. Our system of government, founded 
mainly on the principles of the British constitution, combines the free- 
dom of a republic v/ith the stability of a monarchy, and affords, at 
once, the utmost security to life and propert}^ and the fullest liberty 
to the subject. Our municipal and educational systems are working ad- 
mirabl3\ Of the latter, although not the same in all the provinces, there 
are good reasons to feel proud, for, at our common and grammar schools. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 485 

and provincial colleges, the child of the poorest citizen may receive, almost 
"without money and without price," an education second only to that of an 
English University. 'Tis thus the Dominion of Canada ajjpears in its 
fourth year. What of the future? That depends on the wisdom and 
pati'iotism of its ^Jeople. There are in British America the stones — the 
materials — lying ready to build up an imposing national edifice. It is 
second only to Russia in point of size. Its natural i-esources in lands, in 
forests, in mines, and in fisheries, are practically inexliaustible. Its past 
progress in wealth and population has been satisfactory. It possesses first- 
class canals, railways, and water communication ; the volume of its annual 
commerce has swelled to $130,000,00U ; its merchant marine occupies the 
fourth place among the navies of the world, and its institutions are in 
keeping with the intelligence of the age. "When we add that it is one of the 
most light!}' taxed and cheapest countries in the world to live in, no iar- 
ther evidence is i-equlred to prove that Ave have, in the Dominion, not 
simply an invaluable heritage, but one which possesses all the natural 
resources necessary to enable us to build up a new and powerful nationality 
on the northern part of this continent. 

12. The session of Parliament of 1870, which opened on the 
15th of February and was prorogued on the 12th of May, 
found Sir John A. ]\lacdonald still at the head of the ministry, 
with the following cabinet : — 

The Hon. Sir Jonx Alexander Macdonald, K.C.B., Minister of 
Justice and Attorney-General. 

The Hon. Sir Geo. Et. Cartier, Bart., Minister of Militia and Defence. 

The Hon. Same. Leoxaku Tilley, C.B., Minister of Customs. 

The Hon. Sir Francis Hincks, K.C.M.G., Minister of Finance. 

The Hon. Hector Louis Langevin, C.B., Minister of Public Works. 

The Hon. Alexander Morris, Minister of Inland Revenue. 

The Hon. Joseph Howe, Secretary of State for the Provinces. 

The Hon. Charles Tupper, C.B., President of the Privy Council. 

The Hon. Peter Mitchell, Minister of Marine and Fisheries. 

The Hon. Alexander Campbell, Postmaster-General. 

The Hon. Christopher Dunkin, Minister of Agriculture and Statistics. 

The Hon. James Cox Aikins, Secretary of State of Canada. 

The Hon. Jean Charles Chapais, Receiver General. 

The following members of the Privy Council were without 
office : — 

Hon. Sir Alexander Tilloch Galt, K.C.M.G. 

Hon. Sir John Rose, K.C.M.G. 

Hon. Sir Edward Kenny, Knt. 

Hon. William McDougall, C.B. 

Hon. William Park Howland, C.B. 

Hon. Adams G. Archibald. 

The session was an important one in point of legislation. The 
following is a brief summary of one of the most important acts. 



486 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

13. Manitoba. This act constituted a province of Mani- 
. J toba out of that portion of liupert's Land, etc., bounded by DG^ 
\^ f west long., 50^30' north lat., 9U° west long., and the boundary 

of the United States, to take effect from the day on which her 
majesty, by order in the council, should annex liupert's Land and 
the North-west Territories to Canada. The provisions of the 
British JNorth American Act, 1867, not applied to other sepa- 
rate provinces alone, were made applicable to Manitoba. It 
was to be represented in the senate of the Dominion l)y two 
members, till it had, by census, fifty thousand people, then by 
three ; when it had seventy -live thousand, by four. In the 
iiouse of Commons, by four members, until next census; after 
that, according to the fifty-fifth section of the British North 
American Act. There were to be a lieutenant-governor and an 
executive council, to consist of five persons ; the seat of govern- 
ment, till otherwise determined, to be at Fort Garry, now 
Winnipeg. The Legislature consisted, besides the lieutenant- 
governor, of a legislative council and legislative assembly. 
The former to consist of seven members for four years ; after- 
wards might be twelve, appointed by the lieutenant-governor 
in her majesty's name, he also appointing the speaker. Quorum, 
a majority. Speaker to have vote and casting-vote. The 
legislative assembly to consist of twenty-four members ; the 
lieutenant-governor to organize the districts wuthin six months. 
A bona Ji'de householder for one year before election, twenty- 
one years of age, and a British subject, may vote. For the 
first election having been a householder at any time within the 
twelve months was sufficient. Must vote in division where he 
was resident at date of the writ. For first election the lieutenant- 
governor could issue the writs to whomsoever he thinks fit, and 
prescribe the forms, etc., of proceeding. Duration of Assem- 
bly, four years. The right to legislate respecting education 
could not affect any existing right respecting denominational 
schools. An appeal to the governor in council is granted to 
the minority. In case proper legislation was not enacted, or 
decision of governor in council is not executed, the Canadian 
Parliament might make remedial laws. The English and 
French languages were to be used in the Legislature and 
courts. Interest was to bo allowed to the province on four 
hundred and seventy-two thousand dollars per annum, it hav- 
ing no de])t, and a subsidy of thirty thousand dollars per annum 
and eighty cents per head, increasing till its population reaches 
four hundred thousand. The present customs duties then levi- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 487 

able ia Rupert's Land were continued for three years. Such 
laAvs relating to customs or inland revenue, as the governor in 
council might declare, should be applied to the province, '/he 
ungranted lands were vested in the crown for Dominion pur- 
poses. One million four hundred thousand acres were appro- 
priated for the resident half-breed families, the lieutenant- 
governor to set apart and apportion them under regulations to 
be made by the governor in council. Grants in freehold by 
the Pludson's Bay Company before the 8th of March, 1869, 
are coniirmcd ; if in less than freehold, might be converted to 
that at desire of the owner. Titles by occupancy under the 
company, in parts where the Indian title has been extinguished, 
should, if required, be also converted by grant. Peaceable 
possession in such parts gave a right of preemption. These 
rights were to be ascertained and adjusted l^y the lieutenant- 
governor, under regulations to be made by the governor in 
council, who should also settle mode or form of grants. The 
Lieutenant-Governor of Manitoba Avas to be also lieutenant- 
governor of the unorganized portion of the north-west terri- 
tories, etc., and the act of the previous session, except as 
herein altered, was extended to them. A vast amount of leijis- 

-I • < • 

lation was effected regarding Dominion notes, banks, and 
banking, discipline on Canadian vessels, and a census was to 
be taken in 1871, which was duly provided for. 

14. This act of Parliament, erecting the province of Mani- 
toba, demands in this place some brief mention of that province 
and its previous history. This section, now known as Mani- 
toba and the north-west territories, was formerly called the 
Hudson Bay Territory. "The Hudson Bay (or Hudson Sea) 
is said to have been reached by Sebastian Cabot in 1517. In 
1523-4 Vcrrazzani sailed up the coast as ftir as Davis Straits, 
which were reached by Davis in 1585. Various other English 
navigators sailed northward in quest of a north-west passage 
to India ; but it was not until 1610 that Henry Hudson reached 
the straits and bay now bearing his name." Button, an English 
navigator, visited the bay in 1612, Bylot and Baffin in 1616, 
and Fox and James in 1631 ; Baffin and James hays were 
traced out and examined by these navigators. The early 
French fur-traders in New France maintained commercial re- 
lations with this region by way of the Saguenay river. The 
Treaty of St. Germain, in 1632, contirmed the whole region to 
France ; and De Grozellicr and Radisson, two French Cana- 
dians, visited it ; but they failed to induce their own govern- 



488 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

ment to assist them, and applied to Prince Rupert, of England, 
who entered warmly into their scheme, and despatched them to 
the bay on a trading voyage. Although England h;id relin- 
quished her claim to the region, Charles IL Mas induced to 
grant a charter for the trade in peltries in Ivupcrts Land, 
which is the origin of the famous Hudson Bay Company char- 
ter of 1G80. This charter produced French and English con- 
flicts in the territory. In 1G72 M. Albinel and St. Simon, 
with the consent of the Indians, erected thofleur de h's and the 
cross at several places in token, for tlie third time, of the sov- 
ereignty of Erance. Having secured the services of De Grozellier, 
the French pilot, the new English Hudson Bay Company 
despatched its first expedition to Port Nelson, on the bay, in 
1G73. De- Grozellier, not having remained faithful to his en- 
gagement with the English, was di.smissed, and returned to 
Europe. He was received with favor in France, and returned 
to Canada shortly after the French AV'est India Company, Avhicli 
traded in Canada, was dissolved. In IGGG another Franco- 
Canadian Company was formed at Quel)cc, to promote trade at 
the north-west, and De Grozellier and Kadisson were despatched 
by it to Hudson's Bay to open a traffic. In 1G79 Louis Jolliet 
was despatched by the Quebec Company to Hudson's Bay, " in 
the public interest." The intrusion of the English in these 
territories was keenly felt during this time. In 1G1S2 Radisson 
and De Grozellier v/erc again despatched to Port Nelson, to 
counteract the trading designs of the English. In 1G84: Radis- 
son a second time deserted his fellow-colonists, and allied him- 
self to the English. He went to London in 1684, and offered 
his services to the English Hudson Bay Company. They were 
accepted, and he was placed in command of an expedition, con- 
sisting of live vessels, which were despatched in that year to 
capture the French trading-posts at the bay. This he did with- 
out difficulty. The destruction of the French factories at Port 
Nelson by Radisson, in 1G84, led to spirited reprisals on the 
part of the company at Quebec ; and Chevalier de Troyes and 
D'Iberville were despatched with troops from Quebec, and, in 
1G8G, succeeded in capturing tiie principal forts of the company. 
In 1689 the English sent an expedition to retake their captured 
forts, but M. D'Iberville defeated them and took their ships. In 
1689 they again endeavored to accomplish their objects, but 
were again repulsed. D'Iberville returned to France in 1691 ; 
but in 1694 he was sent to the bay with three ships of war, 
and completed the conquest of the English forts at that 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 489 

place. At the treaty of Ryswick, in 1G97, and even up 
to 1713, the English company had only Fort iVlbany left. 
At length the contest between the rival colonics in the 
Hudson Bay Territory virtually ceased. By the treaty of 
llyswick, entered into by France and England in 1G97, both 
parties agreed to restore whatever places at the bay they were 
possessed of before the war. Commissioners were appointed 
to determine this question ; but they appear never to have met. 
At the time of the treaty, however. Fort Alban}^ on the river 
Albany, at the east side of James Bay, was the only place in 
the territory in possession of the English traders, and it con- 
tinued in their possession undisturbed until the treaty of Utrecht, 
in 1713. By this noted treaty France transferred to P^ngland 
the whole of her rights to the Hudson Bay Territor}', and thus 
placed a bar on all the trading privileges of her Canadian sub- 
jects in that part of new France. The English Company has 
since remained in possession of the territory. In 176(5, various 
traders, competitors of the company, engaged in the fur trade. 
Their head-quarters were in ^Montreal, and they followed the 
old French routes into the interior. In 178-4 these traders 
united, and formed the North-west Company of Canada. This 
new company directed its trade chiefly to the north-west via 
Lake Superior, towards the Pacific Ocean and Columbia river. 
In 1793 Sir Alexander INIackenzie, a partner in the North- 
west Company, made his fiimous journey from Canada, across 
the Bocky Mouutains, to the Pacilic Ocean (the first ever made 
north of Mexico), and discovered Eraser river. He afterwards 
discovered and explored the INIackenzie river. In 1811 ]Mr. 
Thompson, the astronomer, discovered the northern or main 
branches of the Columbia river, and descended its stream to 
the Pacific Ocean. As we have already seen, in 1870, Mani- 
tol)a (Red River) was set apart as a province of the Dominion 
of Canada. It was first settled by Lord Selkirk, in 1811. The 
North-west territories include nominally the following divi- 
sions : 1. Labrador; 2. Prince Rupert's Land; and 3. Swan 
River and Saskatchewan, which Avere granted in 1G70, by the 
charter of Charles 11. , to the Hudson Bay Company ; 4. Mac- 
kenzie river; and 5. The North-west Indian territories, leased 
by the company in 1821, and transferred to Canada in 18G8, 
and Keewatin, formed in 187G out of a part of the North-west 
territories. 

15. In 1871 British Columbia was admitted to the L^nion 
under the provisions of the British North American Act of 1867, 



490 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

which completed the territorial extent of the Dominion from the 
Atlantic to the Pacific. The discovery and early settlement of 
the British Pacific coast is full of interest. Sir Francis Drake 
is supposed to have gone as far north on the Pacific coast as the 
Juan do Fu-ca Strait in 1578 ; and Cavendish also made some 
discoveries in the North Pacific in 1587. In that year he cap- 
tured a Spanish ship off the coast, but put the crew on shore. 
Juan do Fu-ca, a Greek sailor, and one of the crew, was sub- 
sequently despatched by the Viceroy of Mexico to make dis- 
coveries along the coast northwards. He is reported to have 
reached, in one of his expeditions, the strait Avhich now bears 
his name. The Spaniards made various discoveries along the 
same coast in subsequent years ; but it was not until 1778 that 
Captain Cook, by direction of the British government, explored 
the coast as far north as Nootka Sound. In that year some 
London merchants made a settlement at Nootka Sound for the 
purpose of establishing a depot for Chinese trade. In 1779 
Capt. Meers, R.N., named, and, in part, explored, the Strait 
of Juan do Fu-ca. In 1792 Capt. Vancouver, R.N., was de- 
spatched from England to the Pacific to meet Sefior Quadra, a 
Spanish commissioner, and to settle with him matters of differ- 
ence, as to territory, which had arisen on the coast between 
England and Spain. Vancouver was also directed to explore 
the adjacent coast (with a view to determine the north-west 
passage), especially the strait itself and Admiralty Inlet. He 
afterwards, following the course of an American captain, threaded 
his way through the islands of the Gulf of Georgia (named by 
him after George III.), to Queen Charlotte's Sound. Out of 
compliment to the Spanish commissioner, Capt. Vancouver as- 
sociated Quadra's name with his own in naming the island ; but 
it now ])ears only the name of Vancouver, that of Quadra hav- 
ing fallen into disuse. In 1771 John Ilearn, an employe of the 
Hudson Bay Company, was induced to explore " the far-off metal 
river" running northwards into the Arctic Ocean, and thus dis- 
covered the Coppermine river and Great Slave Lake. Another 
distinguished explorer, Sir Alex. Mackenzie, discovered, in 
his first expedition into the interior, the large river, since 
known as the Mackenzie river, which also falls into the Arctic 
Ocean. In 1792, while Vancouver was exploring the coast, 
Mackenzie, following up the course of the Peace river, crossed 
the Rocky Mountains into British Columbia. Here he reached 
the Tatouche Tesse, which he supposed to be the Columbia 
river, but Avhich afterwards was know as the Eraser river. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 491 

From this river he crossed the country towards the Pacific 
Ocean, which he reached by way of the Sahiion river. In 1800 
Simon Fraser, the eni[)h)ye of the North-west Fur Company of 
Canada, explored the country from Fort Chippe^vayan (Lake 
Athabaska), crossing tiic liocky Mountains, formed a trading- 
post at Fraser Lake, on a tributary of the river to which we 
have referred, and wliich was also named after him. In 1843 
Vancouver Island was lirst occupied by the Hudson Bay Com- 
pany, and Victoria, the capital, founded. This capital was 
selected by James Douglas, Esq., the governor, on behalf of 
the Hudson Bay Company. In 1844 the boundary line between 
the United States and what is now known as British Columbia 
was determined. In 1849 Vancouver Island was conditionally 
granted by the queen to the company, for the purpose of settle- 
ment. Subsequently a dispute arose between the British and 
American governments as to the construction of the boundary 
treaty, both parties claiming the island of San Juan, which is 
situated in the Ilaro Archipelago, as within their territory. In 
185() a joint commission was appointed to settle the dispute, 
but failed to etfcct a settlement. In 1872 the Emperor of 
Germany, to whom the matter had been referred, decided 
that the boundary line should pass through the Ilaro chan- 
nel, thus giving the island of San Juan to the United States. 
In 1859 gold was lirst publicly known to exist in the 
valley of the Eraser river, and thousands immediately 
flocked thither. Mining regulations were issued by the 
governor, and routes projected into the interior, where 
gold was chiefly found. The existence of gold in these 
regions Avas previously known to a few, and especially to the 
Indians. In 18G2 it was discovered in Queen's Charlotte's 
Island. In the year 1859 the occupation of Vancouver Island 
was resumed by the queen ; and it, together with British 
Columbia (now so noted for its gold mines), was erected into 
two British crown colonics, with separate boundaries, but under 
one government. James Douglas, Esq., the resident Hud- 
son Bay Company's agent, or local governor, was invested with 
the same authority l)y her majesty, with jurisdiction over both 
colonies. Laws were lirst made by the governor and his ex- 
ecutive council and pronndgatcd by royal proclamation, after 
which they were submitted to the queen and both houses of 
Parliament. In 18<J3 separate governors were appointed for 
each of the two colonies ; and the name New AVestminstcr was 
given to the capital of British Columbia l)y the queen, at the 



492 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

request of the inhabitants. The site of New Westminster was 
selected by Colonel Moody, in preference to Fort Langley, 
which is on the American side of the Frascr river. In 18G6 
the two colonies were united under one governor and Legisla- 
ture. In 1871 British Columbia and Vancouver Island (as 
one province) joined the Dominion. tSuch a union of all the 
colonics of British North America would, it was thought, pro- 
mote the construction of the great Pacific Kailway, so long 
projected, through British territory. 

16. The Parliament of Canada opened in 1871, with Sir 
John A. Macdonald still at the head of the government, and 
Avith the same cabinet last quoted, except that the Hon. J. H. 
Pope had taken the place of Hon. Christopher Dunkin as 
minister of agriculture and statistics. The governor-general, in 
his speech, alluded to the Fenian raid ; militia expenditure con- 
sequent on it ; the peaceful settlement of the Red-river troubles ; 
the address from British Columbia asking for admission into 
the confederation ; the Pacific Ilailway ; the settlement of the 
north-west country and opening means of communication ; the 
joint high commission ; the assimilation of the currency ; the 
census ; insurance companies ; savings-banks ; weights and 
measures, etc., as subjects which required the attention of 
Parliament. The revenue for the previous year was stated to 
be in a flourishing condition, with a prospect of diminution of 
taxation. 



CHAPTER XXXIX. 

DOMINION OF CA'N ABA— (continued). 
FROM 1873 TO 1878 — government of lord dufferin. 

1. 1x1872 Lord Lisgar was succeeded by Lord Dufferin, 
the Right Honorable SirFrederick Temple, Earl of Dufferin, 
Viscount and Baron Clande])oye, etc., etc., one of Her 
Majesty's Most Honorable Privy Council, Knight of the Most 
Illustrious'Order of St. Patrick, and Knight Commander of the 
IMost Honorable of the Bath. The new governor-general Avas 
received Avith great enthusiasm. The Parliament of 1872 did 
not open until the 11th of April. A noticeable feature Avas the 
presence for the first time of members from British Columbia. 
The governor-generars speech adverted first to the Prince of 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



493 



Wales' recovery and the appointment of a Thanksgiving Day ; 
stated that the kite meeting of Parliament had been at the in- 
stance of the imperial govern- 
ment ; mentioned the Fenian 
attem})t on Manitoba, and in- 
vited the attention of the Leg- 
islature to the Washington 
Treaty, Pacific Hail way, immi- 
gration, canals, and several 
other measures ; announced the 
flourishing state of the Domin- 
ion finances ; asked for sup- 
plies, and congratulated the 
house on the general prosperity 
of the country. Sir John A. 
Macdonald was still at the head 
of the government, and with 
nearly the same ministry, as 
follows, — but the great states- 
man Avas destined soon to suffer 
defeat through what has come to be known, in history, as the 
" Pacific Scandal " : — 




The Right Hon. Sir Jonx Alexander Macdonald, K.C.B., Minister of 

Justice and Attorney-General. 
The Hon. Sir Geo. Ex. Oartier, Bart., Minister of Militia and Defence. 
The Hon. Samuel Leonard Tilley, C.B., Minister of Customs. 
The Hon. Peter Mitchell, Minister of Marine and Fisheries. 
The lion. Alexander Campbell, Postmaster-General. 
The Hon. Jean Charles Chavals, Receiver-General. 
The Hon. Hector Lolls Langevin, C.B., Minister of Public Works. 
The Hon. Joseph Howe, Secretary of State for the Provinces. 
The Hon. Sir Francls Hincks, K.C.]\LG., Minister of Finance. 
The Hon. James Cox Aikins, Secretary of State of Canada. 
The Hon. Charles Tupper, C.B., IMinister of Inland Revenue. 
The Hon. John Henry Pope, Minister of Agriculture and Statistics. 
The Hon. John O'Connor, President of the Privy Council. 

The following were the members of the Privy Council without 
office : — 

Hon. Sir Alexander TnxocH Galt, K.C.M.G. 
Hon. AVilliam McDougall, C.B. 
Hon. William Pearce Howland, C.B. 
Hon. Adams G. Archibald. 
Hon. Sir Edward Kenny, Knt. 
Hon. Sir John Rose, K.C.M.G. 
Hon. Christopher Dunkin. 
Hon. Alexander Morris. 



494 



HISTORY OF DOMINION" OF CANADA, 



2. A census of the Dominion of Canada was taken in 1871, 
which gives a vast amount of important information. In 1665 
the population of Canada was '6,251. Between this time and 
the close of the century the census was taken ten times ; and, 
in 1698, in consequence chiefly of immigration from France, 
the population had increased to lo,8l5 persons, and again, in 
1754, to 55,000. And, assuming the general ratio of increase 
for the preceding half century, there were probably 60,000 
l^ersons in 1760, when the province was ceded to England. 
The last French census was taken in 1759, and give 82,000 
(Montcalm) ; but all these could not have been ordinary resi- 
clents in the country, since that would impl}^ an addition to the 
population, during the five intervening j^ears, of more than 
5,000 annually ; whereas the several censuses show that the 
average annual increase for several years preceding 1754 was 
but little more than 800. Many of these, then, must have be- 
longed to the army, augmented at that time in the struggle 
with England, and they probably soon after returned to France. 
Any addition to the population from immigration was probably 
after this period from Great Britain. In 1770 the number had in- 
creased to 91,078, and to 127,845inl780. By an act of the British 
Parliament, in 1791, the old Province of Quebec Avas divided 
into Lower and Upper Canada, the entire population at that 
time being (as far as can be determined) between 150,000 and 
160,000, of whom about 10,000 lived in the latter province. 
These were chiefly United Empire Loyalists, who came from 
the United States during and after the llevolutionary War. A 
well-known authority, Joseph Bouchette, places the population 
of Quebec in 18U6 at 250,000, and again, in 1825, at 4^)0,000, 
the number having been nearly doubled in the preceding nine- 
teen years. By interpolation between these two dates, the 
population was about 397,600, in 1821 — that is, just fifty 
years before the late census of 1871. The population for the 
several decennial years, beginning with 1821, and their re- 
spective ratios of increase, are as follows: — 



Years. 


Numbers. 


Ratios. 




1821 


379,600 






1831 


548,254: 


37.8 per cent. 


By Interpolation. 


1841 


601,380 


20.4 


do. . . 


1851 


863,860 


30.6 




18G1 


1,111,566 


28 6 




1871 


1,101,575 


7.2, or 22 per cent, as Shown 
below. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



495 



This remarkable decrease in the ratio given by the late census 
will be fully accounted for, when it is stated that there are 
pretty satisfactory data from which it can be shown that prob- 
ably not less than 150,000 of the people of Lower Canada 
emigrated to the United States between the years 1861 and 
1871. These, with a moderate ratio of increase, added to the 
number given by the late census, would show a population for 
the province of Quebec of 15(5,000, being an actual increase 
of 245,000 during the last decennial, and giving a decennial 
ratio of increase of 22 per cent., instead of 7.2, as it now stands. 
This ligure would accord very fairly with the ratios given in 
the table for the preceding four decennials, and prove that the 
French people of Lower Canada are not less prolilic now than 
in former periods of their history. The same authority, 
Bouchette, gives to Upper Canada 77,000 souls in 1811, and 
151,097 in 1824; and interpolating the population would be 
about 129,100 in 1821, that is also fifty years before the late 
census. The numbers for 1828 and 1832 are given, and inter- 
polating the population for 1831 w^as 239,690. Again the 
numbers are given for 1848 and 1852, and by interpolation we 
have 888,810 as the population in 1851. The population of 
Nova Scotia and New IJrunswick, prior to 1850, are not at hand. 
The numbers, taken from the census records are, for 



Tears. 


Numbers. 


Ratios. 


1851 

18G1 

1871 


270,117 

349,857 
377,804 


19.82 per cent. 
17.21 " 



And similarly for New Brunswick the figures are, for 



Years, 


Numbers. 


Ratios. 


1851 . 
180 1 . 
1871 . 




193,800 
255,047 

285,777 


30.65 per cent. 
13.38 



British Columbia was made a part of the Dominion of Canada 
by proclamation of her majesty, on the 20th day of July, 1871 ; 



496 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

and the population of the settled districts, including whites, 
colored, Chinese, and natives, on the 2d day of April, 1871, 
was 19,252. The total Indian population is estimated at about 
50,000. The census of the province of Manitoba Avas taken for 
electoral purposes, in December, 1870 ; and the number of per- 
sons, of British and French extraction, was found to be 11,045. 
3. Had there been no immigration from our shores, the 
population in all the British provinces in 1871, as deducted from 
a patient inquiry into the various elements affecting the whole 
question, would have been nearly four and a half millions, in- 
stead of 3,72(j,31l) (240,558 of this number must be counted for 
Newfoundland and Pri«ce Edward Island in 1871), and the ra- 
tio of our increase would have been greater than that of the 
United States, notwithstanding the ceaseless fioAV of immigra- 
tion to that country. Including the number of our people liv- 
ing there in 1870 (as shown in their late census), and their 
natural increase since 1814, the British provinces have lost 
more than six hundred thousand persons, altogether ! But con- 
federation, with its accompanying influences, has completely 
chanijed the entire face of thinos in the dominion of Canada. 
It has infused a wonderful degree of energy, enterprise, and 
self-reliance into our people, just the very elements wanting 
while the several provinces were isolated, with separate and 
sometimes antagonistic interests. In pr6of of this it is found 
that never before was there such a demand for labor of all 
kinds, and never were there such cheerful contentedness and hope 
in the minds of our people. They possess half a continent of 
their own now, the stream of emigration is steadily turning 
towards our shores, and emigration from Canada has nearly, if 
not altogether, ceased. And not only is this a fact, but the 
very opposite is a fact also ; for hundreds of Canadian families, 
wdio had settled in the United States years ago, are now return- 
inor to Manitoba and the surrounding regions, having found that 
country not to have answered the glowing descriptions given of 
it by its friends. If our people now desire to leave the older 
provinces, they have a great north-west of their own to move 
to, with millions of square miles of the most fertile lands, 
abundantly watered by streams, rivers, and lakes, and whose 
mineral resources are literally inexhaustible, immense beds of 
coal being found on the wide plains, and gold, silver, iron, 
etc., among the Rocky jNIountains. The climate also is found 
not to be surpassed in salubrity anywhere in America. Only 
let that great iron band that is to connect the Pacific with the 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 497 

Atlantic coast be once constructed, let our statesmen show the 
wisdom and energy needful for the great occasion, and the Do- 
minion of Canada will soon become not merely the " brightest 
gem" in the crown of our sovereign, but a " diadem of beauty," 
surpassing all earthly diadems. 

4. On the 5th of iVovember, 1873, Sir John A. Macdonald's 
government was defeated, and forced to resign. Hon. Alex- 
ander Mackenzie succeeded him with the following cabinet, 
which was formed on the 7th of November, two days after : — 

The Hon., Alexander Mackenzie, Premier, and Minister of Public 
Works. 

The Hon. Antoine Aime Doriox, Minister of Justice and Attorney- 
General. 

The Hon. Edward Blake, Minister without Portfolio. 

The Hon. Albert J. Smith, Minister of Marine and Fisheries. 

The Hon. Louis Lettellier de St. Just, Minister of Agriculture and 
Statistics. 

The Hon. Richard J. Cartright, Minister of Finance. 

The Hon. David Laird, Minister of the Interior. 

The Hon. David Christie, Secretary of State. 

The Hon. Isaac Burpee, Minister of Customs. 

The Hon. Donald A. Macdoxald, Postmaster-General. 

The Hon. Thomas Coffin, Receiver-General. 

The Hon. Telesphore Fournier, Minister of Inland Revenue. 

The Hon. William Ross, Minister of Militia. 

The Hon. Richard W. Scott, Minister without Portfolio. 

This change in the political composition of the government 
left the following list of privy-councillors without office : — 

The Right Hon. Sir Johx A. Macdoxald, P.O.. K.C.B., etc. 

The Hon. Samuel L. Tilley, C.B. 

The Hon. Sir Alexander T. Galt, K.C.M.G. 

The Hon. William McDougall, CB. 

The Hon. William P. Howlaxd, C.B. 

The Hon. Adams G. Archibald, G.M.C. 

The Hon. Peter Mitchell. 

The Hon. Alexander Campbell. 

The Hon. Jean Charles Chapais. 

The Hon. Hector Louis Langevin, B.C. 

The Hon. Sir Edward Kenny. 

The Hon. Sir Johx Rose, K.C.M.G. 

The Hon. Christopher Dunkix. 

The Hon. Alexaxder Morris. 

The Hon. Sir Francis Hincks, C.B., K.C.M.G. 

The Hon. James Cox Aikins. 

The Hon. Charles Tupper, C.B. 

The Hon. John Hexry Pope. 

The Hon. John O'Connor. 

The Hon. Thomas N. Gibbs. 

The Hon. Theodore Robitaille. 

The Hon. Hugh Macdoxald. 



498 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

It is now nearly four years since Hon. Mr. Mackenzie as- 
sumed the position of prime minister of Canada, during which 
time he has administered the aflairs of the government in a very 
satisfactory manner. There have been many changes in his 
cabinet, but it still retains some of the original chiefs. It was 
also in 1873 that Prince Edward Island entered the union as 
one of the provinces of the Dominion. 



CHAPTER XL. 

THE DOMINION OF CAIH ABA — (continued). 

A GENERAL SUMMARY THE FIRST TEN TEAKS OF THE DOMINION A SKETCH 

FROM THE BRITISH QUARTERLY REVIEW. 

1. In the three preceding chapters I have traced the most 
important events and political measures, in their order, from 
1867 to 1873, since which time nothing of sufficient importance 
has occurred to demand great attention. Before proceeding to 
note the affairs which have made the administration of Lord 
Duflerin one of the most prosperous in the annals of British 
North America, we may review the subject since confederation, 
from the stand-j^oint of an able contributor to the "British 
Quarterly Review." The writer evinces a good knowledge of 
his subject, but impresses one that his politics have too much 
influence over his pen, and therefore his criticisms on the late 
ministry of the Right Honoral^le Sir John A. Macdonald must 
not be read without some allowance. I have interspersed a 
number of portraits of leading public men in the Dominion, in 
this sketch, to whom no reference is made therein. They have 
all been mentioned in previous chapters, or will be on succeed- 
ing pages, and their insertion in this place is to accommodate a 
wish to distribute them as nearly equally as possible throughout 
the work. The article referred to constitutes the whole of the 
folloAving portion of this chapter. 

2. On the 1st of July last the Dominion of Canada entered 
on the second decade of its existence. A natural opportunity 
is thus presented for reviewing its brief history, and the suc- 
cess of its eflfort to solve the political problems to the pressure 
of which it owed its origin. Such a review will be found to be 
not without interest to the student of political science, especially 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES, 



499 



in England, for Canada exhibits tlie British constitution under 
a pecuHar set of cireunistauces, by which its operation is modi- 
tied in a way that is at once interesting and important. Even 
before the formation of the Dominion, the Canadian colonies 
had excited interest among British statesmen hy successfully 
grappling with some problems, like that of a State Church, 
which formed a l)urden rather than an advantage of the inheri- 
tance received from the mother country ; Init sin(;c the confed- 
eration of the colonies, ten years ago, their political transac- 
tions have risen in imperial significance. The neighborhood 
of Canada to the United States, and the intimate commercial 
and social relations which that neighborhood entails, have 
already brought, and must continue to bring, the affairs of the 
Dominion before the imperial government in a way that is 
sometimes more important than pleasant; while, among them- 
selves, the Canadians are now facing the storm and stress of 
conflicts which, even in the varied political history of England, 
have not been completely fought out, and may therefore be 
forced upon her yet. 

3. It may not be unnecessary to remind some readers that, 
previously to 1867, the British American provinces stood to 
each other practically in the relation of foreign countries. 
Governed by wholly independent Legislatures, separated by 
dissimilar tariffs, they were united 
only by the unobtrusive bond of a 
common dependence on the impe- 
rial government of Great Britain. 
Political thinkers, who were lib- 
eral enough to be influenced by 
other considerations than the party 
questions of the hour, saw that 
such relations were indisputal)ly 
hostile to the interest of all the 
provinces concerned, whicli could 
hope for a position of importance 
on the American continent only by 
such unrestricted connnercial and 
social intercourse as might uhi- 
mately weld them into one people. 
It was evidently also in the interest of the imperial govern- 
ment that the colonial minister in London, instead of being 
obliged to deal with a number of petty States, should be able 
to correspond with a single government representative of them 




nON. EDWARD BOWEN. 



500 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



all. But the circumstances which led immediately to the con- 
federation of the British American provinces cannot he under- 
stood without a brief reference to the previous history of 
Canada. 

4. When Canada was ceded to Great Britain it was all em- 
braced under one province, extending somewhat indefinitely 
into the west, and known by the name of the Province of 
Quebec. In 1791, the western section of the province, which 
had meanwhile been populated by English settlers, was sep- 
arated into an independent province, with British institutions, 
while the eastern section continued to retain its original French 
character. These two provinces, of Upper Canada or Canada 
West, and Lower Canada or Canada East, remained separate 
till 1840, when they were united into one province, styled the 
Province of Canada, in the hope of allaying the political dis- 
content which had culminated in the rebellion of 1837. In this 
province, down till the period of confederation, ten years ago, 
politicians had been divided into two parties, one of which was 
distinguished by the name of Conservatives, while their oppo- 
nents were known as Liberals or Reformers, though commonly 
dubbed, in more familiar style. Clear Grits, in Upper Canada, 
and Rouges, among the French of the lower province. The 
history of the struggle between these parties may be read still 

with a little more than ordinary 
human perseverance, but by no 
human intelligence can it be 
comprehended. Its incompre- 
hensil)ility does not indeed arise 
from the absence of any ques- 
tion sufficient to call the politi- 
cal combatants to arms, for at 
times there was a measure of 
solid importance flaunted by one 
of the parties as a standard 
round which its forces rallied. 
But even in such cases it is im- 
possible to see why the measure 
should have been taken under 
protection by its advocates rather than by its opponents. The 
student of the period, whose imagination cannot now be fired 
by the heat of its burnt-out passions, fails, even after patient 
investigation, to discover any general principle which uniformly 
inspired either party, and breathed a soul into the particular 




SIR JOHN MICHEL. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 501 

measures for which it fought. The rapidly changing adminis- 
trations of those years sliow, at this distance, a scene not 
unlike a well-known juvenile sport, in which boys divide them- 
selves into two sets, for the mere enjoyment of a tug against 
each other's strength, and, after one set is victorious, divide 
themselves again and again till they get worn out. Unfortu- 
nately, in contests of this kind, bloodless though they be, mere 
mortals, unlike the ghostly heroes of Walhalla, do at last be- 
come exhausted. This exhaustion came all the more naturally 
upon the combatants in the political arena of old Canada, owing 
to the circumstance that for some time neither party was 
cheered l)y any decisive victory. In truth, their struggles as- 
sumed a serio-comic aspect at times, as one administration after 
another attempted to carry on the business of the country by a 
majority which occasionally reduced itself to a unit, and was 
likely to become a vanishing fraction, or a minus quantity, 
whenever a test question was pressed to a decision. Can we 
wonder that in these circumstances both parties at last laid 
down their arms in despair, and sought a peaceful settlement 
of their quarrels? 

5. Looking from our passionless distance at those old con- 
flicts, one may reasonably question whether the political system 
of the province was not less to blame for their fruitless per- 
petuation than the incompetence of the polemical politicians by 
whom they were carried on. But, however this may be, the 
fault of the dead-lock between the two parties was charged by 
the politicians, not on themselves, but on the political arrange- 
ment by which the two Canadas were united. As a result of 
this a coalition was formed for the purpose of breaking up the 
union of the two Canadas, and merging them separately in a 
larger confederation of the British American provinces. After 
a considerable amount of preliminary negotiation, matters were 
sufficiently advanced in 1866 to admit of delegates being ap- 
pointed from the different provinces to confer on the terms of 
confederation. The delegates met in London, and the result 
of their deliberations was the British North American Act, 
passed by the Imperial Parliament, 29th March, 1867. On 
the 1st of July in that year, a proclamation of the queen 
ushered the young confederacy into existence ; and the waste 
of gunpowder, the destruction of maple branches, the display 
of dry goods in bunting and fashionable attire, showed it to be 
a festival on which the Canadians kept high holiday. Since 
that time the 1st of July — Dominion Day, as it is called — has 



502 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

formed, among the Canadians, a rival to the great holiday of 
the Fourth among their American neighbors. Whether the 
day will hold its place or not, who can tell? The explosion 
of tons of gunpowder in pyrotechnic exhibitions, and feux de 
joie, and salvos of artillery, will not make the baptism of fire 
by which a people announces that it has been born into the 
family of nations. 

6. At the formation of the confederacy it embraced only 
four provinces, — Upper Canada, under the ncAv name of 
Ontario; Lower Canada, under that of Quebec; Nova Scotia 
and New Brunswick, under their old names. Since then the 
provinces of Prince Edward Island in the east, and of British 
Columbia in the west, have joined the Dominion ; while the 
" Great Lone Land " in the north-west has been acquired by 
buying up the rights of the Hudson's Bay Company, and alread}'' 
a portion of it set apart as the Province of Manitoba. The 
vv^hole of British North America is thus included in the Domin- 
ion, with the exception of Newfoundland which thus, literally 
and figuratively, remains out in the cold. The political consti- 
tution of the Dominion, as well as of the seven provinces 
which now compose it, is in all essential respects a reproduc- 
tion of the British constitution. The only exception is in the 
case of Ontario and Manitoba, the former having from the firt^ 
contented itself with one legislative chamber, while the latter, 
for economy's sake, has since followed her example. Recently 
a proposal has been revived to unite under one provincial gov- 
ernment the three maritime provinces of Nova Scotia, New 
BrunsAvick, and Prince Edward Island. It is to be hoped that 
this proposal may be carried. Neither of these provinces by 
itself holds the position which its people should be ambitious 
of attaining in the Dominion ; while they entail upon them- 
selves an enormous useless expenditure by supporting three 
governments, each with a paid lieutenant-governor, a paid 
cabinet, and two legislative bodies whose members are paid. 
As one province, they might cope with Quebec or Ontario ; 
with a single government they would have a large surplus reve- 
nue to expend in ' developing their natural resources; while 
their legislative chamber or chambers would attain a dignity 
which is hopeless while they attempt to invest the petty })oh- 
tics of a narrow sphere with the pomp of imperial ceremonies. 

7. Such were the political arrangements with which the 
Canadians entered on the new attempt to solve the problems of 
their national life. The political outlook was certainly cheering. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 503 

The old fiictions had forgotten their interminable struggles for 
office, and there seemed to 1)8 opened to them the noble destiny 
of working together, and along with their new fellow-country- 
men from the other provinces, in building np a great nation 
along the north of the American continent. This was evidently 
the interpretation of the position formed by the majority of 
thinking men throughout Canada, and it was the interpretation 
on which the government of the new Dominion began to be 
formed. 

8. In the selection of a prime minister the governor-general 
was guided by an equally obvious and just consideration. At the 
conference of colonial delegates in Loudon, by whom the de- 
tails of the Confederation Act were arranged, the chair had 
been occupied by Sir John A. Macdonald, Avho had long been 
leader of the conservative party in the old Province of Canada. 
The position to Avhich he had thus been raised by his fellow- 
delegates was a fair indication of the position which he held 
among the public men of Canada, and the governor-general 
therefore naturally called upon him to assume the duties of the 
first premier, and to form the first government of the new Do- 
minion. In the performance of this task Sir John Macdonald 
acted on the understanding that the coalition out of which the 
confederation arose would be continued still, in order to over- 
come any difficulties wdiich might arise in getting the now ship 
of state fairly off the stocks. Accordingly he invited prom- 
inent reformers as well as conservatives to accept office in his 
cabinet, his intention being that, as far as the provinces of 
Quebec and Ontario were concerned, his government should 
represent equally both of the old parties. His invitation was 
accepted by several of the leading men among his old opponents, 
and there seemed a fair prospect that one great object of the 
confederation was to be accomplished, that the bells which 
rung in the first Dominion Day would ring out the " ancient forms 
of party strife." 

10. But the spirit of the old factions died hard. The calm 
which preceded the birth of the new constitution was but the 
prelude to a stormful party fight. Some time before, indeed, 
an incident had occurred of ill omen for the success of the 
coalition, which was seeking to merge the political differences 
of the past in a larger sphere of future work. While the coali- 
tion w^as maturing its plans, one of its members, the Hon. 
George Brown, suddenly resigned his portfolio, without any 
definite indication of the reason which led him to abandon his 



504 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 




colleagues. Mr. Brown had long been a recognized leader of 
the reform party, and, therefore, one of the chief opponents of 
the new premier, Sir John Macdonald. His action necessarily 

excited a feeling of uneasiness 
at the time, and seemed to re- 
ceive its explanation afterwards, 
when the writs for the first 
general election were issued, and 
Mr. Brown explicitly declared 
the policy he intended to adopt 
under the altered circumstances 
of the country. 

11. Sir John Macdonald had 
succeeded in forming a cabinet 
fairly representing the parties 
of the old Province of Canada, 
as well as the other provinces 
of the Dominion. To Mr. Brown 
it was a sufficient objection to the 
ministry that its head was his old political foe. His friends of 
the reform party, who had accepted office, became thereby, 
in his eyes, renegades from the cause of reform ; and if any 
one uro^ed that it was unfair to attack the new administra- 
tion before its policy was known, the answer was read}', that, 
the only safe government is by parties, and that it would be 
hazardous to the interests of the new Dominion if its govern- 
ment were unwatched and unchecked by a regularly organized 
opposition. 

12. Mr. Brown has had the advantage, during the greater 
part, of his public career, of possessing, as an exponent of his 
opinions, the most popular newspaper in Canada. About these 
opinions it is evident that he is thoroughly in earnest ; ho acts 
and speaks with the passion of intense conviction. Yet with every 
allowance for the earnestness of his intentions, and in view of 
all that his organ had to say in defence of his position at this 
crisis, we cannot but regard that j^osition as involving a political 
blunder of the most serious nature. Even from his own point 
of view, was it legitimate to let the government of the country 
slip from the hands of his part}'^, to fall under the control of 
politicians whose principles were worthy of being denounced in 
the passionate language which he uniformly employed? He 
had, at the time, not only a right to demand ftn' his party an 
equal share with his opponents in the administration of public 



SIR HUGH ALLAN. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



505 



affairs, but lie had also an opportunity offered by the premier 
of asserting that right. To demand that his party should ex- 
ercise no injfluence on the business of the country beyond that 
which proceeds from the opposition benches, when they had the 
right and power of controlling the treasury, seemed to many to 
involve a betrayal, not only of the interests of party, but of the 
more sacred interests of the whole people. 

13. But the history of the formation of the Dominion was 
meaningless if Mr. Brown's position was justifiable. By com- 
mon consent the new confederation was to drown in a flood of 
wider sympathies the arbitrary landmarks by which the old 
parties had been separated. Yet here was a proposal that the 
confederation should start on its young career by instituting a 
division of parties, Avhich, as the nature of the case implied, 
was demanded, not by the inevitable antagonism of political 
measures, but simply for the sake of having a division ; for the 
only justification of Mr. Brown's position lay in his plea of the 
absolute indispensability of parties iu the good government of a 
country. Let us speak with the most generous acknowledgment 
of the benefits which have, necessarily or incidentally, resulted 
from party government, especially 
in the history of England and 
other free countries. Yet is it not 
an utterly extravagant estimate of 
these benefits to look upon -the 
system of forming an essential 
element iu all healthy political 
action, and to insist therefore on 
the moral obligation of retaining 
it under all political conditions? 
It is surely no universal and 
eternal lav/ of human life that men 
can govern themselves only b}^ 
splitting into hostile cliques, who 
shall create fictitious causes of quarrel if the natural course of 
events do not furnish them with real ones. Not once or twice 
only in the history of the world have all the rival sections of a 
people coalesced by the irresistible force of their enthusiasm in 
a common righteous cause ; nor need we despair of such coali- 
tions in the future, when they are demanded by the moral 
developments of the human race. In such supremo moments 
of national harmony is it a national duty to detail an unfortunate 
section of the community to do the work of an advocatus diaboU, 




WILLIAMS. 



506 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

simply that their client may have his due, and the people be 
saved from violating the innuutable obligation of government 
by parties ? The truth is that government of men by keeping 
them at hostility with one another, so far from growing in 
favor with the progress of ethical and political knowledge, is 
falling into disrepute throughout all spheres of human life ; and 
the only matter of surprise to the reflecting observer is that the 
system should have held its ground so long amid that western 
civilization which for fifteen hundred years has been based on 
the worship of a Being whose life and death are the perfect 
type of self-sacrifice for the good of others, and in the service 
of whom there was to be no longer any difference of Jew and 
Greek, of bond and free, of male and female ; but all the 
separated sections of men were to become spiritually one. Still 
it is growing into more general recognition, in theory as well 
as in practice, that any numl)er of men, whether the few who 
join in a commercial enterprise, or the millions who form a 
nation, or the hundreds of millions who compose the human race, 
can reach the highest welfare of their external as well as of their 
internal life by working in harmony rather than at discord with 
one another. The attempt to estal)lish permanent international 
relations by means of war ; the attempt to establish the gospel of 
glory to God, with peace on earth and good-will among men, 
by the mutual antipathies of religious sects ; the attempt to 
develop the wealth of nations or of iudividuals by selfish competi- 
tion ; all such efforts are doomed to abandonment by the 
higher races, like slavery and other social phenomena of un- 
civilized life, as belonging to a ruder stage of human progress. 
It is, therefore, no idle dream of Utopian statesmen which 
would secure the general Avelfare of a nation by all parties 
cooperating as far as possible, and separating into hostile rela- 
tions only as a last unwelcome necessity, when there is no 
common course on which they can possibly agree. 

14. This was evidently the viaw which was taken by the 
vast majority of Canadians at the first general election for the 
Dominion Parliament. Mr. Brown practically demanded that 
their political life under the new confederation should be still 
an endless contest of the parties who had disturbed the old 
province of Canada, and the answer to his demand was decided 
enough. He was himself defeated in the constituency which 
he had long represented, and the government entered upon 
their duties backed by an enormous majority throughout the 
country as well as in Parliament. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 507 

15. The result in itself was one on which the Canadians 
were to bo congTatulated ; it was one of the most crushing de- 
feats which the spirit of taction ever received. Yet the policy 
of Mr. Brown had the effect at which he aimed; it practically 
divided the politicians of the country into two factions again. 
The government no longer represented the whole people, as it 
was the intention of the premier that it should ; it represented 
once more a mere party, a party perhaps exasperated by an 
opposition which could vindicate its existence by no political 
reason, and certainly elated by their sweeping victory at the 
polls. It is not too much to say that the power and the temper 
of such a government were a peril to the best interests of the 
country. In any circumstances the power of the ministry would 
have been formidable in virtue of their' patronage, which is un- 
controlled by competitive examinations or any other check on 
the personal predilections of a minister or the exorbitant ex- 
pectations of political supporters. But at the formation of the 
Dominion there were several peculiar circumstances which threw 
into the hands of the government an unusual power for obtain- 
ing corrupt support ; and it was, in fact, the abuse of this power 
that led to a gradual reaction against them, and to their final 
overthrow in 1874. 

16. This reaction appeared first in the Province of Ontario, 
where the tide of political feeling rises to a higher flow, and 
stretches into larger issues, than in other parts of the Dominion. 
Here an opposition arose in the provincial Legislature, which, 
though not identifying itself with the position taken by Mr. 
Brown at the elections, yet received the powerful support of 
his organ, the " Globe " newspaper of Toronto. The leader of 
this opposition was Mr. Edward Blake, Q.C., lately the "presi- 
dent of the council in the Dominion government. Mr. Blake 
had entered political life only at the first general election for 
the Dominion. Appearing at first as an independent critic of 
the course pursued by the'Ontario ministry, he conducted his 
criticisms with such ability that he was soon recognized by both 
sides of the house as the most formidable opponent with whom 
the government had to contend. 

17. The prime minister of Ontario, on the other hand, was 
the Hon. John Sandfield Macdonald, who had long been a prom- 
inent friend of Mr. Brown among the leaders of the old reform 
party. Mr. Macdonald had been selected by his nauicsakc and 
former o[)ponent, Sir John ^Macdonald, on the ground that the 
province of Ontario would be most fairly represented by an old 



508 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



reformer, while one of the old conservatives became premier of 
Quebec, — a province which, under the dominant influence of 
the Catholic clergy, has generally been conservative. There is 
no doubt that Mr. Macdonald intended to guide himself by the 
principles of reform, and these principles continued, in fact, to 
direct his administration in many respects, especially in the 
economy by which it was generally characterized. But his in- 
tentions met with a serious obstacle in the inveterate hostility of 
that party among his old friends which had sided with Mr. 
Brown, and he was, therefore, driven to seek assistance from 
allies from wdiom it w^ould have been to his advantage if he had 
held aloof. Accordingly the government of Ontario, though 
headed by an old liberal minister, and representing a decidedly 
liberal province, soon began to show tendencies towards a policy 
in distinct antagonism to the principles of all liberal govern- 
ment. It was thus in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario that 
the new issues of political warfare in Canada first assumed defi- 
nite shape, and it was here that politicians began to range 
themselves into new parties. 

18. Any one who watched with earnest eyes the contests 
in the Legislature of Ontario could scarcely fail to see, and to 
see more clearly from year to year, that here liberalism had met 
its old foe in new shapes, and was surely fighting a battle which 

should not be without an interest 
to men. We take it that the 
struggle of liberal statesmanship 
in all ages has been to find an 
effective check by the people 
upon their executive govern- 
ment ; and the foe of liberalism 
all along has been the endeavor 
of political adventurers — be 
they monarchs, hereditary oli- 
garchies, or cabiuets of minis- 
ters — to hold themselves above 
popular control. Under a con- 
stitution like that of Canada, 
and still more under one like 
the American, it is not difficult 
to see how a cabinet, by unscrupulous artifices, might attain a 
position almost as free from resiDonsibility to the people as that 
of the veriest hereditary despot, — a position from which they 




HON. S. L. TILLEY. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 509 

could be dislodged only by an extraordinary outburst of popular 
indignation. 

1\). One source of enormous power which a government 
possesses for securing its position unjustly is to be found in the 
expenditure on public works. In a new country such expendi- 
ture must always be large, and in Canada ten years ago it was 
unusually increased, owing to works which had to be undertaken 
by the very terms of the confederation. It is not necessary to 
explain how favors can be shown to contractors which will call 
forth their energies when the existence of a government is im- 
perilled, and open their purses when an electioneering fund is 
getting exhausted. The hordes of men also employed by large 
government contractors can easily be made to feel an interest 
in the party through whom they have obtained their immediate 
occupation. But an attempt at corraption of a somewhat novel 
character was made, especially in the Province of Ontario, by 
the bribery of entire localities. In the location of national 
institutions the government of this province gave it to be under- 
stood, by unmistakable actions, and even by unmistakable lan- 
guage, that they were guided not so much by a regard for the 
interests of the people at large as by the intention of rewarding 
those constituencies which had sent representatives to the right 
side of the house. This policy culminated in a measure which the 
government used its majority to carry in the Legislative Assembly 
on the eve of the second provincial election. By this measure 
one and a half million of dollars were placed absolutely at the 
disjDOsal of the government, with the single restriction that it 
was to be distributed in bonuses to projected railways in diifer- 
ent parts of the province. 

20. On several occasions previously the government had, 
not without strenuous opposition, obtained smaller grants for 
various works, without any specifications, and therefore without 
any reliable estimates. In the case of the large railway grant, 
though the sum formed part of an accumulated surplus in the 
provincial treasury, the English reader ought to bear in mind 
that it represented nearly the whole annual revenue of the prov- 
ince at the time ; and this sum was handed over to the govern- 
ment without any specification as to the particular projects 
which were to be assisted, and without the roughest estimate 
of the amount which each might require. In view of the prin- 
ciples by which the government had given it to be understood 
that they were guided in the expenditure of public money in 
diflferent localities, and in view of the fact that nearly every 



510 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 




sin A. A. DORION. 



county had some pet railway project on hand at the time, it would 
not have been surprising if the government bait had caught every 
constituency in the province. It is to the credit of the political 

sentiment of Ontario that the 
people refused the bait. The op- 
position had all along protested 
against the government asking for 
large sums, while they refused to 
give the house specific informa- 
tion as to the nature and locality 
and estimated cost of the works 
on which the sums were to be 
expended. It was on this point 
specially, and with more prom- 
inent reference to the large rail- 
way grant, that the o})position 
met the ministerial }>arty at the 
polls in 1871. We believe that 
the more dispassionately this crisis comes to be estimated, the 
more it will be recognized that the very principle of constitu- 
tional government was at stake in the election. No plea can Ijc 
advanced in defence of the ministerial policy which would not 
equally have justified the ministry in asking for a vote of the 
entire revenue for each year in a lump sum, without laying any 
estimates before the house. It has long been a familiar com- 
monplace in the politics of constitutional countries, that the 
legislative body, which represents the people, must be satisfied 
as to the necessity and expediency of all expenditure in the 
public service before voting the requisite grants, and that this 
princi[)le forms the one effective check which the people hold 
over the men who control the machinery of government. AVith- 
out this check, the forms of representative government nnght 
be relegated among the solemn farces which still impart the 
dignity of a hollow stateliness to many departments of human 
action. An administration, therefore, which acts on the prin- 
ciple of demanding enormous sums, while retaining to itself the 
unchecked control of their expenditure in detail, is on the fair 
way to meet the house some day with a preposterous speech 
from the throne : " Gentlemen, my ministers have formed care- 
ful estimates of the amounts which will be required for their 
respective departments, and from these estimates I find that the 
total amount demanded by the exigencies of the public service 
will be so many millions. It is evidently for the interests of 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 511 

the country that the public service should not be interfered 
with by men who have not the special acquaintance that my 
ministers possess with its requirements. I shall, therefore, 
simply ask you to vote the total sum which I have named ; and 
I have the <>ratitication of knowinij that you will thus be restored 
all the sooner to those important private occupations which, I 
feel assured, must suifer seriously by your prolonged attendance 
here. You will, of course, draw still the usual sessional allow- 
ance." 

21. It was, therefore, no mere cry of a faction which the 
opposition raised, when they appealed to the electors of Ontario 
against the policy of the government, and their appeal was 
evidently sustained by the voice of the electors at the polls. 

, Feeling confident in the result of the elections, the opposition 
determined to put the government on its trial at the very open- 
ing of the new Legislative Assembly. When the address was 
moved, they proposed an amendment condemning the policy of 
the ministry in reference to the railway grant, and the amend- 
ment was carried by a small majority. The ministry pretended 
to treat the vote as not implying want of confidence ; but an ad- 
ditional vote, with an overwhelming majority, compelled them 
to abandon the treasury benches with some loss of dignity at 
last. 

22. The course of political affairs in the Province of On- 
tario was but an inner circle of the wider course taken by the 
politics of the Dominion. Here the opposition was led by the 
present prime minister, the Hon. Alexander McKenzie. For 
the first two or three years its feebleness obliged it to content 
itself with aimless criticism of isolated measures ; but by and 
by the ministry began to indicate a policy similar to that which 
had called forth a victorious opposition in Ontario. It has 
been observed above that the fundamental safeguard of all 
constitutional government is that the executive shall be held 
under as minute and incessant control as the public service 
will allow, and that the one foe of all constitutional govern- 
ment is the political adventurer who endeavors to hold himself 
above such control. Legislation may, of course, render the 
ambition of such adventurers more difficult, but every system 
of government is exposed to peril fi-om the unscrupulousness 
of the men by whom it may be administered. The circum- 
stances of Canada, as of all new countries, form a peculiar 
source of temptation to corruption in the administration of her 
government. From the very nature of the case, a new country 



512 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

cannot possess that leisurely class of men from whom England 
has long derived her noblest statesmen ; and from all that we 
have observed there seems no immediate prospect of this defi- 
ciency being made up in Canada ; at least, not a few instances 
have been brought to notice in which the sons of wealthy Canadian 
merchants have been allowed to content themselves with a 
disgracefully meagre education, and have squandered, in friv- 
olous idleness or in coarse sensuality, the fortunes Avhich had been 
laboriously accumulated by industrious parents ; while no in- 
stance has yet attracted attention in which the leisure derived 
from hereditary wealth has been devoted to the service of the 
public in political life. The result of all this is that the ad- 
ministration of public affairs necessarily falls very largely into 
the hands of j^rofessional politicians, — of men who enter poli- 
tics as they woidd enter any other profession from which they 
seek to obtain a living. It is no discredit to Canadians in par- 
ticular, but to human nature in general, to say that only the 
most incorruptible of men can utterly withstand the tempta- 
tions of such a profession. At least the sympathy of every 
earnest political thinker must be repelled by any policy which 
would render it easier for the professional politician to yield to 
the temptations of his position. 

23. It was, as we have said, a policy in this direction — a 
policy of encouragement to the mere political adventurer — 

that strengthened the opposition to 
the first government of the Dominion, 
and a brief reference to the main 
points of conflict between the govern- 
ment and their opponents will suffice 
to make this evident. One of the 
most serious dangers to constitutional 
government is the power which a cab- 
inet possesses of manipulating the 
elections so as to put the opposition 
at a disadvantage throughout the 
country. This may be done, for ex- 
ample, by spreading the elections over 
some weeks, taking care to secure the 

HON. A. G. ARCHIBALD. , t n ^ 1 y j^l 

large number ot voters who go tor the 
winning side by obtaining at an early date the decision of those 
constituencies in which the ministry expect a favorable return. 
The same end is also attained l)y bringing to the polls the large 
army of civil servants throughout the country, by leaving the 




ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 513 

law practically inoperative against bribery, and by the appoint- 
ment of returning-otKccrs unscrupulously obsequious to the 
interests of the party by whom they are appointed. Now, no 
one who watched impartially the elections for the second Parlia- 
ment of the Dominion could avoid the conviction that the 
government had been using their power in all those waj's to 
secure a verdict in their favor at the polls. The elections were 
brought on in an order which was wholly inexplicable except 
in the interest of the ministry. Votes were obtained from 
men whose employment in the service of the nation ought to 
keep them aloof from the service of a party. In more than 
one instance a returning-officer sent in a return so manifestly 
in opposition to the facts, that the government, out of self- 
respect, should have at once subjected the offender to criminal 
prosecution. 

24. But it was mainly by their conduct in reference to the 
laws against bribery, and by the advantage which they took of 
the laxity of these laws, that the ministry brought upon them- 
selves their defeat. It had been well enough known to every 
one in Canada for a long time that representative government 
was being rendered a laughing-stock hy the extent to which 
bribery was being carried on by all parties. All the evidence-' 
on the subject shows that neither party throughout the country 
could boast of superior freedom from this corruption. Only 
this can be said of the leaders in the opposition at the time, 
that they demanded the legislation which has since been ob- 
tained, and which has proved a very formidable impediment to 
bribery and other dishonorable influences at elections. The 
government, however, hy its overpowering majority in Parlia- 
ment, crushed all attempts at legislation in this direction, and 
the result was that the second election for the Dominion House 
of Commons was disgraced by an extensive system of bribery, 
in which, according to their own confession, the leaders of the 
government were deeply involved. 

25. The sources from Avhich the government obtained 
funds for bribery Avere various ; but after every allowance for 
disinterested subscriptions from conscientious supporters, there 
remain enormous sums, which no statesman should ever have 
allowed himself to touch, or, if tempted to use, could ever 
have spoken of afterwards without a feeling of shame. There 
was even a prevalent suspicion that the public money was being 
misdirected to electioneering purposes ; and, though it may be 
admitted that the suspicion was founded on a mistake, it must 



514 



HISTORY or DOMINION OF CANADA, 




IIOX. ALEX. MACKENZIE. 



also be boriic in mind that the premier himself was entirely to 
blame for giving currency to the suspicion. Amotion had been 
introduced into the House of Commons at Ottawa for a confi- 
dential audit of the expenditure on the Secret Service Fund, 

and the motion was defended by a 
reference to British practice. The 
government, however, succeeded 
in defeating the motion, and Sir 
John Macdonald, in vindicating 
afterwards his opposition to the 
motion, not content with denying 
that the demand for a confidential 
audit was justified by British 
usage, made the astounding asser- 
tion that, if a cal)inet in England 
^^■ent out of office with one hun- 
dred thousand pounds of secret 
sei'\4ce money to their credit, 
they could employ it in carrying 
the elections against their oppo- 
nents. It is somewhat surprising that this statement did not 
attract attention or call forth any protest from the English press 
at the time, and that it was only after some years tliat Sir John 
Macdonald acknowledged his misapprehension about the prac- 
tice of British statesmen in reference to the use of secret 
service funds. 

2G. But, however well or ill founded may have been the 
suspicion that the Dominion government were abusing the 
public money for party purposes, their own confession places 
beyond all controversy the notorious attempt to maintain their 
position by corrupt influences in connection with the projected 
Pacific Railway through Canadian territory. This scandal re- 
ceived such prominent notice in the EngHsli press at the time,' 
and is still so recent, that it is unnecessary to revive its details 
at present. One or two points of special political importance 
are all that require to be remembered. 

27. In the first place, the Pacific Railway Bill contained in 
an ao-gravatod form those unconstitutional features which have 
been already pointed out in the earlier railway bill of the 
administration in Ontario. It handed over absolutely to the 
government, along with fifty million acres of land, the sum of 
thirty million dollars, — a sum fully equal to the public revenue 
of the whole Dominion for a year and a half ; and the people 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 51,' 



— the House of Commons — were thus left without a voice as 
to the route which the railway should take, or even the most 
general details of its construction. In the second place, mem- 
bers of the cabinet confessed to havmg accepted for election- 
eering purposes a sum — which in Canada must be accounted 
very large — from the gentleman who had been promised, or 
ut least expected, the contract for the Pacific Railway, and who 
has declared that it was no political conviction, but simply the 
spirit of commercial speculation that induced him to adv^ancc 
so much money for the purpose of keeping the government in 
power. It was likewise a serious aspect of this political scandal 
that the government made an extremely qucstional)Ie use of its 
prerogative, and showed a somewhat unseemly contempt of the 
privileges of Paiiiament, in order to prevent the House of 
Commons f^om itself carrying out the investigation on which it 
had determined. 

28. It was no wonder, therefore, that, Avlien at last the min- 
istry met the house, they found the opposition vastly increased 
in strength, and, after a lengthened debate, resigned without 
waiting for a division. The new ministrj^ soon after its forma- 
tion, dissolved the house ; and the appeal to the electors showed 
that they were sustained by a very powerful element through- 
out the country. Whether they will retain that support for 
any length of time is a question on which, as on other social 
subjects, it is hazardous to form predictions ; but it is a ques- 
tion which is of interest only in so far as the ministry realize 
the mission which they have undertaken, and to which they 
owe their position, — of lighting the battle of constitutional 
government in Canada. Certainly nothing has happened which 
should make the country forget the serious faults of the pre- 
vious administration ; but the temper of political discussion, 
both in the House of Commons at Ottawa and throughout the 
Dominion, gives too great reason to fear that politicians are 
settling again into two factions, separated by no principle ex- 
cept the common conviction of the desirability of being in 
office. However convenient this state of things may be for the 
professional politician, it is a result which can be contemplated 
only with the deepest concern by every earnest student of 
political affairs. Not only would such a result deteat one great 
end of the Canadian confederation, but it would give a new 
force to one of the great perils of po[)ular goveinment. Let 
us hope that the premier of the Dominion and his associates 
may prove themselves e:|ual to their mission, and they may 



516 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

find some safeguard for constitutional freedom against that des- 
potism of party which has formed one of its most powerful 
foes at all times, and now forms its peculiar foe ou the other 
side of the Atlantic. 



CHAPTER XLI. 

THE DOMINION OF C Al:^ AD A — (cotitinued). 

EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS THE NEWSPAPER PRESS. 

1. Befghe resuming the narrative of political events in the 
Dominion, during the administration of Lord Duft'erin, we may 
pause to glance at the educational developments of the prov- 
inces. We will begin with Ontario. Here education was first 
encouraged ])y private enterprise. In pioneer days nearly 
every garrison, either by its chaplain or military school-master, 
also contributed towards the general fund of knowledge. Dr. 
ITodgins, a reliable authority, informs us that the first school 
opened in Ontario was ])y the Rev. Dr. John Stuart, a Protes- 
tant Episcopal clergyman and a united empire loyalist, who had 
been chaplain to the provincial volunteers, coming with them as 
a refugee. In 1785 this gentleman opened a select classical 
school at Cataraqui, Kingston. Soon after, Mr. Donovan 
taught a garrison school there ; but we shall not occupy our 
space with any list of first school-teachers, as we might do. 
Most of the few rural schools in the country in those early days 
were taught either by discharged soldiers or itinerant teachers 
from the United States. It is said that the latter used their own 
school-books, thereby tincturing their pupils with their own 
political views. This may account for the fact that the municipal 
institutions of Ontario are more nearly like those of the United 
States than those of any other British American province. 
However, the Legislature early took means to exclude the 
American school-master. A writer who visited ICino-ston in 
1795, says : "Li this district there are some schools, but they 
are few in number. The children are instructed in reading and 
writing, and pay each a dollar a month. One of the masters, 
superior to the rest in point of learning, taught Latin; but he 
has left without Ijcing succeeded by another instructor in the 
same language. In 1795 the government took some initiative 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



517 



steps ill an educational direction, growing out of a correspond- 
ence between Governor Sinicoc and Bisliop INIountain of Quebec. 
The matter was referred to the Legislature, which in 1707 
memorialized Kinc; Georsfc III., soliciting; a jj^rant of hmd for 
the endowment of a grannnar school in each district, and a 
university for the whole province. To this request the king 
gave his consent; and in 1798 the chief civil officers of l^pper 
Canada recommended that live hundred thousand acres of land 
be set apart for the establishment of a grammar school in each 
district, and a central university for the whole province. They 
also rcconnnended a grant for a plain but solid and substantial 
building for a grammar school in each district, containinga school- 
room capable of holding one hundred boys, without danger to 
their health from too many being crowded together, and also a 
set of apartments for the master, large enough for his family 
and from ten to twenty boarders." The salaries proposed to be 
given were : one hundred jiounds 
for the head-master, lift}' pounds 
for the assistant master, and 
thirty pounds for repairs, etc. 
Kingston and Niagara were rec- 
ommended as eligible sites for 
schools ; after which, when the 
funds were sufficient, schools 
were to l)e established at Corn- 
wall and Sandwich. Toronto 
was recommended as entitled 
to the imiversity, and for the 
establishment and support of 
which a sum of at least equal 
to that granted to the four 
schools was named. The cele- 
brated Ecv. Dr. Chalmers was 
asked to take charge of the 
schools ; but, declining, the place was offered totlic Right Rev. Dr. 
Strachan, Bishop of Toronto, then a school-master at Kittle, Scot- 
land, who occui)ied it. But on his arrival at Kingston, in 1709, 
he found that (jovernor Sinicoc had gone to England, and that 
the project of the college had been in the mean time aliandoncd. 
In the same year an ori)han school had been opened near St. 
Catherine's. It was now discovered that as land sold for a 
shilling an acre, the grant which had been recommended 
would do but little towards endowing grammar schools, 




518 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

and the whole project was abandoned, and what little educational 
effort was put forth was due to private enterprise. Mr. 
Strachan opened a private school in Cornwall, in 1804, which 
was the only school of note in Upper Canada for many years, 
and in this, as also. Mr. Strachan's school at Toronto, Avcre 
educated many of those gentlemen who subsequently occu- 
pied important positions in the province. The early pro- 
moters of education in Ontario committed the mistake of first 
establishing grammar schools and a university, without mak- 
ing any provision whatever for public and elementary schools. 
This error was difficult to overcome for several years after. 
At length, however, in 18 IG, common schools were established 
in Ontario, but even then the attempt was made only as a 
doubtful experiment. But, in the face of whatever doubts may 
have existed, we find that the government was in i-eal earnest, 
and determined to give the scheme a fair trial, as it granted 
twenty-four thousand dollars for its support. Unfortunately, 
however, in 1820 the grant was reduced to ten thousand dol- 
lars. In 1822-3 Sir Peregrine Maitland, the lieutenant-govern- 
or, submitted to the imperial government a plan for organizing 
a general system of education for the province, including ele- 
mentary scliools. One year later he received permission to 
establish a board of education for the supervision of this system, 
and for the management of the university and school lands 
throughout the province. Considerable effective Avork was 
accomplished by this board. In 1824 we find the government 
encouraging education by providing reading-books for the com- 
mon and Sunday schools, as promoting moral and religious 
instruction. About the same time an effort was made to extend 
the advantages of education to the Indians, to establish a uni- 
versity for the province and an academy for the Wesleyans. 
The latter, under the name of the "U})per Canada Academy,"- 
was projected in 1830, and founded at Coburg two years after. 
It was opened in 183.5, and a royal charter obtained for it in 
the same year by Rev. Dr. llyerson. In 1841 this academy 
became the university of Victoria College. In 1827 the Legis- 
lature took more active steps to promote education, and grants 
were made to sustain both the grannnar and common schools. 
In 1832 the provincial board of education was abolished, and 
the management of the schools transferred to the crown and 
the Legislature jointly. About this period, however, the 
schools of Upper Canada did not bear a very enviable reputa- 
tion. Dr. Thos. Ralph, wJio travelled in the province in 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 519 

1832-3, thus describes them : "It is really melancholy to trav- 
erse the province and go into many of the common schools. 
You lind a herd of children instructed by some anti-British 
adventurer, instilling into the young, tender mind sentiments 
hostile to the parent state." In 1836 a female academy Avas 
established by Mrs. Cromb and her sister, Mrs. Bradshaw. 
Afterwards Kcv. D. McMullan added a male department to 
it. In 183G considerable elfort "was made to improve the 
common schools, but, during the rebellion which devastated 
the province soon after, little attention was given to the sub- 
ject of education. However, in 1831) the sky brightened, and 
two hundred lifty thousand acres of land were set apart as a 
permanent endowment of the grammar schools, and the govern- 
ment was authorized to appoint live trustees to manage each 
of them. The sum of eight hundred dollars was granted as a 
bonus to those counties Avhicli should apply a like sum to erect 
a grammar school building, and permanently insure it. "In 
1840-41," wi-ites Dr. Ilodgins, "Victoria College and Queen's 
College were incorporated as universities, and Congregational 
and United Presbyterian theological colleges were established. 
In 1841-42 the Friends (Quakers), at the instance of John 
Joseph Gurney, of England (who contributed five hundred 
pounds sterling to it), established a seminary at Bloomtield. 
near Picton ; and a Church of England Theological college was 
established at Cobourg. Two years later Knox College, 
Toronto, Avent into operation. In 1846 Regiopolis College 
(Kingston) Avas established ; and in 1848 St. Joseph's College 
(Ottawa) . In 1840 the union of the two provinces took place ; 
and in 1841 the first Parliament of United Canada passed an 
act definitely establishing a system of education for the A\'hole 
Province of Canada, and fixing the annual grant for its support 
at the munificent sum of two hundred thousand dollars. This 
act first embodied the principle of separate schools. In 1843 
the act Avas, however, repealed, so far as Upper Canada AA^as 
concerned, and another act applicable to Upper Canada (still 
recognizing the principle of separate schools) was substituted 
in its place. In 1842 the long-projected uniA^ersity for Upper 
Canada AA'as established at Toronto, under the name of King's Col- 
lege, and Bishop Strachan Avas appointed its first president. 
In 1844 ilev. Dr. Hyerson, having made an extensive tour in 
Europe and in the United States, submitted the result of his 
inquiries in an elaborate 'Peport on a system of Public Ele- 
mentary Education,' and accompanied it Avith a draft of a bill 



520 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 




which became law in 184G. In 1847 a system adapted to 
cities and towns was established. In the same year the 
jprovincial Normal School was opened at Toronto. For a 

few years the school law under- 
went a good deal of unfriendly 
local criticism, which, in 1849, 
culminated in the hasty passage 
of a bill 1)y the Legislature en- 
tirely repealing all former acts. 
This led to an educational crisis ; 
and in 1850 the whole system of 
popular education underwent a 
thorough revision. A compre- 
hensive draft of a bill on the 
sul)ject was submitted to the 
Baldwin government by the 
chief superintendent, and ap- 
proved. This bill was concurred 
in by the Legislature, and be- 
came law in June of that year. 
It still forms the basis of the 
present common-school system of Ontario. The chair of divinity 
having, in 1849, been abolished, and other changes made in 
King's College, — the name of which was changed to that of the 
University of Toronto, — which were unacceptable to Bishop 
Strachan, and other members of the Church of England, the 
venerable prelate (although in his seventy-second year) vigor- 
ously set about the establishment of an exclusive Church of 
EngUind University. In this he was eminently successful ; and 
having, in 1850, secured an act of incorporation for it from the 
Canadian Legislature, he obtained, in 1851, a royal charter 
from the queen for the University of Trinity College, at 
Toronto. This institution was formally opened in 1852, and the 
Diocesan Theological School at Cobourg merged in it. In the 
same year (1852) St. Michael's College was established at 
Toronto, by some clerg3aiian of the order of St. Basil, under 
the patronage of the Kight Reverend Doctor de Charboncll, 
second Ivoman Catholic bishop of the diocese. In 1853 some 
valuable improvements were made in the details of the com- 
mon-school system. After having been discussed at various 
county school conventions (which were held by the chief 
superintendent of education), these improvements Avere em- 
bodied in a supplementary school bill, and in that form received 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 521 

the sanction of the Legislatui-c." The grammar (now high) 
schools were much improved iii 1853, and in 1857 tlic Metho- 
dist Episcopal Church established the Belleville Seminary, 
since called Albert University, and in the same year the Bap- 
tists established the Literary Institute at Woodstock. The 
school for the deaf and dumb was not in motion in 1858, and 
was subsequently merged into the present tine institution at 
Belleville. In 18G1 the AVesleyan Female College was estab- 
lished at Hamilton ; in 18G5 Hellmuth College, for boys ; and 
in 18 69 a college for girls was established by Bishop Hellmuth 
at London. The Roman Catholic Church has also in operation 
several flourishing Ladies' Convent Schools, in the chief cities 
and towns ; while a Church of England Ladies' (Bishop 
Strachan) School has been established at Toronto. There are 
also a large number of superior private schools, chiefly for 
girls, in various parts of the province. In 18G0 several im- 
provements were made in the public-school act. In 18G5 the 
grammar-school act Avas further revised and improved ; and in 
1871 a still more important revision and improvement of the 
grammar and common schools laws were made. The designa- 
tion of these schools was, in the act of 1871, changed to 
"High" and '' Public" schools. Ontario now has one of the 
finest and most complete school systems in America, and, in 
many respects, the most complete and ellective in the Dominion. 
Both in the elementary and higher branches of education there 
is constantly manifested a spirit of progress and improvement 
in full harmony Avith the si)irit of the age. 

2. Pkovixce of Quebec. In the rural districts of the 
Province of Quebec education has made less progress than 
in any other part of the Dominion, yet within the past few 
years this condition has been considerably improved. Rev. 
Father DcJcune, of whom we speak particularly hereafter, 
was the first to begin the work of education in this province. 
In 1G32 he commenced with two pupils, — a negro and an 
Indian l)oy. This first missionar}^ work soon spread itself over 
a wide range of territory, but was devoted chiefly on l)ehalf 
of the Indians, who were at that time about the only inhab- 
itants of the province outside of Quebec. In 1G47, the Theo- 
logical Seminary of St. Sulpice was established in INIontreal ; 
and, in 1GG3, Mgr. Laval, the first Roman Catholic Bishop of 
Quebec, set on foot the " Grande Seminaire de Quebec," de- 
signed for the education of candidates for the priesthood. In 
1GG8, at the suggestion of the celebrated Colbert, Bishop Laval 



522 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



founded the "Petit Semin.aire," which was chiefly designed to 
"fniucizisc" the Huron lads. The project failed, so far as the 
Indians were concerned ; but in 168(S the numl)er of French 
boys at the seminary had iucreased to sixty. The bishop also 
established an industrial school near Quebec, for the hahltants. 
From it they were drafted either to the Grand or Minor Semi- 
nary. The only elementary 
schools which existed at this 
time were those founded by 
Sister Bourgeois, of the Con- 
gregation of Notre Dame, and 
by the llecollets. The Jesuit 
College and several primary 
schools were also maintained. 
In 1728, the Jesuits projected 
;i college at Montreal ; and the 
Frercs Charron, of the same 
city, proposed to establish ele- 
mentary schools in the various 
parishes, as in France. In 
1737 the Christian Brothers 
l)a!Kled themselves together as 
teachers of these church schools, 
and adopted a distinctive garb 
as such. Things remained in 
nearly the same state until after the conquest, — 1759. In 
1778 the Sulpicians established the "Petit Seminaire," or 
"College de jNIontreal." In the following year the Jesuit 
order was suppressed in Canada (as they had, in 1702, been 
suppressed in France), and their revenues were afterwards 
diverted to educational purposes. The Jesuit estates were 
taken i)ossession of by the government in 1800; and in 1831 
they Avere devoted to education. In 1787 the Ijcgislature tirst 
formally turned its attention to education, and a committee 
of the legislative council was appointed "to inquire into the 
best means of promoting education." Two years afterwards the 
committee reported, reconnnending that an elementary school 
be established in each parish, a model school in each county, 
and a i)rovincial college at Quebec, and that they be endowed 
out of the Jesuit estates. The schools, etc., were to be 
open to Protestants and Roman Catholics alike, and were 
to be under the management of a united board of both : 
each church to provide for religious instruction, and the 




ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 523 

visitation of the college to be in the crown. The Bishop 
(Hubert) of Quebec, and Pcre De Glapion, the ex-superior of 
the Jesuits, objected to the plan, and the project failed. — [Dr. 
Hodyins.'] In 1795-9, the Duke de llochefoucault, during his 
stay at Quebec, thus wrote concerning the state of education at 
that time : "The Seminary of Quebec .... forms the 
only resource for Canadian families who wish to give their chil- 
dren any degree of education .... Upon the whole, the 
work of education in Lower Canada is greatly neglected. At 
Sorel and Trois llivieres are a few schools, kept by nuns ; and 
in other places men and women instruct children ; but the num- 
ber of schools is, upon the whole, so very small, and the mode 
of instruction so defective, that a Canadian who can read is a 
bit of a phenomenon. The English government is charged 
with designedly keeping the people of Canada in ignorance ; 
but if it were sincerely desirous of producing an advantageous 
change in this respect, it would have as great ol)stacles to sur- 
mount on this head as in regard to agricultural improvements." 
In 1793 the Legislature made an cfibrt to have the forfeited Jes- 
uit estates devoted to educational purposes, and in 1800 the 
matter was still farther pressed, on which occasion the governor 
replied, that " his majesty George HI. has been graciously 
pleased to give directions (as he had done four j^ars previously 
in Upper Canada) for the establishing of a competent number 
of free schools, for the instruction of children in the rudiments 
of useful learning, and in the English tongue ; and also, as oc- 
casion may require, for foundations of a more comprehensive 
nature ; and his majesty has been likewise pleased to signify his 
royal intention that a suita!)le proportion of the lands of the 
crown should be set apart and the revenue thereof applied to 
such purposes." Pursuant to these wishes of the king, a bill 
was passed establishing a " Royal Institution for the Advance- 
ment of Learning." All schools and educational institutions 
were committed to the care of this one ; but, owing to the fact 
that no grant of land was made, and to mismanagement, the 
project was a failure. This act was afterwards from time to 
time altered and amended, but never accomplished nnicli for 
general education, and finally became the special guardian of 
McGill College, Montreal, which was founded by tlie will of the 
Hon. Peter McGill, in 1811; but, owing to a legal difficulty 
with the will, the royal charter was not granted until 1821. 
In 182-1 a general report on educational matters revealed the 
fact, that " in many parishes not more than five or six of the 



524 HISTORY OF dominion of CANADA, 

inhabitants could wi'ite ; tliat genei*ally not above one fourth of 
the entire population could read ; and that not above one tenth 
of them could write, even imperfectly." To meet the demands 
of the Catholic, the Fahrique Act was passed in 1824, which pro- 
vided for the establishment by the Fabriques, a corporate body, 
under the old French laws, of the cure and church- wardens, of 
one school in each Roman Catholic parish for every hundred 
families. In 1829 an act was passed substituting trustees for 
the Fabriques, which may be regarded as the first general ele- 
mentary school act of Lower Canada, and the germ of the 
present system. It was amended soon after, so as to admit of 
the election of ministers, equally with laj'men, as trustees, for 
half-yearly examination. An appropriation was also made in 
1831 for a deaf and dumb institution. In the same year girls' 
schools were provided for, and prizes instituted. In 183G a 
report to the Legislature revealed the incompetency of teachers, 
and a normal school Avas authorized for five years in Montreal 
and Quebec, and certain convents were authorized to train 
young ladies for teachers for a like period. " The school act of 
1832, as amended, having expired, the Assembly passed a more 
comprehensive bill, which was rejected by the legislative 
council. This bill contained two important features : first, 
authority to establish model schools ; and, second, permission to 
raise a school rate, with the consent of the inhabitants. The 
objections urged against this l)ill were : first, that while the 
aggregate expenditure for education during the preceding seven 
years only amounted to six hundred thousand dollars, yet this 
bill, by its unusually large appropriation (one hundred and 
sixty thousand dollars per annum), would have the effect of 
superseding rather than stimulating local effort; and, second, 
that the expenditure of the grant by members of the house 
was demoralizing. As in Upper, so in Lower Canada, the 
political troubles of 1837-8 paralyzed continued educational 
effort. On the union of the provinces, however, a compre- 
hensive measure was passed providing for a uniform system 
of public education for L^jiper and Lower Canada, and appro- 
priating two hundred thousand dollars a year for its mainten- 
ance. Dr. Meilleur, an active educationist, was appointed to 
superintend the Lower Canada schools. In 1843 this law was 
amended, and in 1816 it was superseded by an improved 
measure, which first embodied a principle of compulsory tax- 
ation. This Avas, hoAvever, modified in 1849, so as to make it 
permissive. In 1851 an abortive effort Avas made to establish a 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



525 




normal school. In 1855 Dr. Meilleur gave place to Hon. P. J. 
O. Chaiiveau, LL.D., who infused new life and energy into the 
school system of Lower Canada." — \_Dr. Tlothjins.'] Meanwhile 
the higher educational institu- 
tions of the province increased 
in number and efficiency. In 
1804, the Seminary of Nicolct 
was established; in 180G, St. 
Ilaphacl Seminary (which had 
been burned in 1803) was re- 
opened as the College of Mon- 
treal ; in 1811, the CoUeo-e of 
St. Ilyacinthe ; in 1824-25, the 
College of Ste. Therese de Blain- 
ville ; in 1820, the Industrial 
College of Chambly; in 1827, 
the Colleo:e of Ste. AnnelaPoca- 
tiere; in"l827-8, McGill Col- 
lege ; in 1828, La Providence 
Convent, at Montreal ; in 1832, 
the jNIcDonald Deaf and Dumb 
Asylum, at Quebec ; in 1833, 

L'Assomption College ; in 1842, the Christian Brothers' Schools, 
at Quebec ; in 1843-45, Bishop's College, Lennoxville, and a 
classical high school, Quebec ; in 1846, St. Michel College, Joli- 
ctte College, Industrie ; in 1847, Masson College, Terrebonne ; 
in 1849, schools for deaf and dumb at Chambly and Longue 
Pointe ; in 1849, the College de Ste. Marie, Montreal ; in 1850, 
the College of Xotre-Dame de Levis and Pigaud College ; in 
1852, jNIcGill College and the Grand Seminar}^ of Quebec, and 
in 1853 Bishop's College was chartered respectively as McGill, 
Laval, and Bishop's College Universities ; in the same year 
(1853) the College of Ste. ]Marie de jNIonnoir and the normal 
and model schools of the Colonial and Continental Church and 
School Society at jNIontreal (subsequently transferred to jNIcGill 
College) ; in 1854, the College of St. Germain do Pimouski, St. 
Francis (Richmond), Laval, near Montreal, Ste. Marie de la 
Bcauce and Vercheres ; in 1855, Sherbrooke and Yarennes 
Colleges; in 1856, La Chute College, Argentenil ; in 1858, 
the Pcformatory School, Isle aux IS oix ; in 1859, the College 
of Trois-Riviercs ; in 1860, Longueuil College ; and in 1862 
IMorrin College, Quebec. In 1872 the Wesleyan Methodists 
projected a college at Stanstead. Hon. Dr. Chauveau prepared 



52G IIISTOPtY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

two important school acts, one to consolidate and improve the 
system of elementary schools, and the other that of superior 
education. He also projected the "Lower Canada Journal of 
Education," and "Le Journal de Tlnstruction Publique," and 
promoted the establishment, in 1857, of Jacques-Cartier and 
McGill Normal Schools, Montreal, and of Laval Normal School, 
Quel)ec. Various modifications and improvements were made 
in the school system of Lower Canada, now Quebec, during 
the incumbency of Dr. Chauvcau, who, in 1867, became Min.- 
ister of Public Instruction, and retired in 1873. 

3. Nova Scotia. Although not one of those provinces 
which led the van in popular educational progress. Nova Scotia 
has, within a comparatively recent period, made great and rapid 
strides to place herself in line with the very foremost. If the 
people, considered in the mass, were late in evincing their 
appreciation of the benefits of general education, they, when 
thoroughly aroused, have exhibited a determined energy in 
compensating themselves for their previous seeming lethargy 
and comparative inaction. It must be admitted that at a period 
even yet (1877) within the recollection of middle-aged Nova 
Scotians, the " common-school system " — as it w^as compli- 
mcntarily called — of that province presented a rather melan- 
choly spectacle. The tourist through the rural districts could 
seldom mistake the "school -house," for it Avas the most unseemly, 
squalid, and dilapidated structure, with the most repulsive 
surroundings, to be seen in the neighborhood. The very aspect 
of the place was calculated to disgust a child, of any innate re- 
finement of feeling, Avith the very name of school. So wretch- 
edly inadequate Avas the remuneration provided for teachers, 
that fcAV Avdio Avere really capable of discharging the duties of 
that most honorable and responsible profession could prevail 
upon themselves to enter the calling of tedchers. Thus too 
often men and women engaged themselves in that capacity be- 
cause they found themselves unfit for anything else. In most 
cases, too, the teacher was under the necessity of making his 
engagement directly Avitli the parents of the children he pro- 
posed to teach. He often had to make a vigorous canvass for 
the position, miserable as it AA'as ; and, when successful, he was 
subject to the caprice of his emplo3'ers, and liable to be dis- 
charged at a moment's notice. An annual grant was made by the 
l^rovincial Legislature in aid of common schools, to be appor- 
tioned upon certain conditions, one of Avhich usually Avas the 
raising of a certain proportionate sum, in each instance, by the 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 527 

people : but this condition was often shamefully evaded. Suit- 
able school text-books, even for the primary branches of tui- 
tion, scarcely existed ; and the forming of pupils into classes 
for instruclion was all but impossible. Yet, under these dis- 
heartening circumstances, the real intellect of the countryman- 
aged to get educated so far as to appreciate the importance of 
education, and each ijeneration of them to make more strenu- 
ous ctibrts for improving the educational possibilities of their 
successors. The struggle upwards was a long and, in its earlier 
stages, a tedious one. Very frequent, but never very impor- 
tant or radical, changes were made in the provincial school law. 
This law merely amounted to a prescription of the conditions 
upon which teachers, or schools, might share in the annual 
legislative grant. County and district boards of school com- 
missioners were appointed by the provincial government, the 
principal duties of which commissioners were the examination 
and licensing of teachers, and the fair distribution, among the 
schools under their jurisdiction, of the county or district por- 
tion of the annual grant. Some of their commissioners la- 
bored manfully in the way of their duty ; but, as to exam- 
ining candidates for teachers' licenses, many of them were 
plainly incompetent to do so ;. whilst others gave themselves 
little concern about the matter. Meanwhile the people in any 
"school district" might do as they pleased about having a 
school at all. Many of them pleased to save their means 
and dispense with a school ahogether ; and thus many thou- 
sands of children in the province were growing up in ig- 
norance. The more advanced advocates of education were 
persistent in their etforts to have the whole schools of the 
country supported by a general property tax, and not to leave 
it optional with the people of any district to have or not to 
have a school. The Legislature exhibited much timidit}^ in the 
matter. At length the law was so far modified as io 'permit the 
people of any "school district" — since designated "school 
section" — to tax themselves in accordance with certain for- 
malities, for school purposes. This fee])le measure produced 
no appreciable results. Wherever there was not universal 
spontaneity in the matter, even strong majorities were seldom 
disposed to persist in adopting a measure which could scarcely 
fail, when so adopted, to stir up bitterness and animosities among 
neighbors. Consequently few communities attempted any action 
in the matter ; and of those few districts which adopted the 
taxation clause, nearly all, through the active factionism of non- 



528 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

contents, soon lapsed back into the old way. At length a new 
and very i^erceptible impulse was given to the cause of com- 
mon-school education by the establishment of a Normal School. 
This institution was founded by legislative act of 1854. The 
school itself was opened in Truro, in the autumn of 1855 ; and 
model schools in connection therewith were soon afterwards 
added. Probably no less beneficial was the influence upon that 
cause of the appointment of a provincial superintendent of 
education, J. W. Dawson, Esq., now more highly and widely 
distinguished as the Principal of McGill College, Montreal, Avho 
was the first to occupy that post in Nova Scotia ; and the un- 
tiring energy, industry, and eloquence with which he strove, for 
years, and under many disheartening circumstances, to elevate 
the position and increase the usefulness of the teacher, and, at the 
same time, to impress upon the mass of the people a due sense 
of the benefits of education, amply entitle him to that gratitude 
which, we believe, is freely accorded by the true friends of 
education in Nova Scotia. The late Eev. Dr. Forrester, first 
principal of the Normal School, succeeded Dr. Dawson as 
superintendent' of education, and in that capacity vigorously 
prosecuted the work which his predecessor had so ably com- 
menced. It now soon became apparent that there was no 
scarcity of fairly competent teachers in the province. Every 
term of the Normal School added largely to their number. But 
competent teachers insisted upon something at least approaching 
to adequate remuneration for their professional services. The 
existing system afforded, at best, only the most precarious means 
of securing that end. It was, strictly speaking, no system at 
all. The more advanced advocates of education — now largely 
increased in numbers and influence — insisted that general as- 
sessment for the support of schools must be the basis, and could 
be the only durable basis, for an eftective, system of common- 
school education. They maintained that the country was now 
ripe for the introduction of such a system. Those still opposed to 
general assessment for the support of schools consisted, for the 
most part, of the most ignorant classes, and, strange to say, 
of the poorest in this world's goods, although as a rule the 
most abundantly provided with children to be educated. It 
was contended that, as the proposed tax would fall most lightly 
upon those disposed to resent its imposition, and as its beneflcial 
results to the country at large would every day become more 
unmistakably obvious, no serious opposition to a really effective 
school law was to be apprehended ; that, in short, any such 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



529 



opposition would prove to 1)0 merely a temporary oiitbm\st of 
petulance, conlinecl to a small and not in any way potent class. 
The sequel showed that this view Avas quite correct. The year 
18G5 marks the commencement of a new era in the history of 
popular education in Nova Scotia ; for in that ^ear was enacted 
the law which, with some slight modifications, is still in force 
in that province, and which has completely revolutionized the 
country in an educational point of view. To Hon. Charles 
Tupper, C.B., at that time the head of the Nova Scotian admin- 
istration, is due the merit of 
having carried this important 
measure through the provincial 
Legislature. The provision 
made by the new law for the 
support of schools was deriv- 
able from throe sources. First, 
the directprovincial grant voted 
annually by the Legislature. 
This grant commenced with one 
hundred and seventeen thou- 
sand dollars, besides six thou- 
sand six hundred dollars to- 
wards the support of country 
academics, and it has slowly 
increased until, in 187G, it 
amounted to one hundred and 
seventy-three thousand three 
hundred and ninety-six dollars and fifty-fiA^e cents. This pro- 
vincial common-school grant has to bo distributed between the 
several counties of the province according to the grand total 
number of days' attendance made by the pupils in the public 
common schools throughout the province. Secondly, each 
county shall, for the support of common schools within its oAvn 
borders, assess upon itself annually a sum which shall net 
thirty cents for every inhabitant of the county, according to 
the last preceding census, each school in the county being en- 
titled to participate in this fund " according to the average num- 
ber of pupils in attendance and the length of time in operation." 
Thirdly, the rate-payers of the school sections themselves arc re- 
quired, at their annual meeting, to decide upon and to assess 
upon themselves the amount that shall be raised by the section to 
supplement the sums provided by the province and county ; 
and also such other sums as may be requisite for the purchase, 




n^ 



30 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



building, furnishing, 



or improvement of school-houses or 
grounds, and for all other purposes necessary for the due 
maintenance of the school. The machinery provided for duly 
administering the law are : the Council of Public Instruction, 
which is to consist of the provincial executive council ; the 
superintendent of education, who must also be secretary of the 
Council of Public Instruction and inspector of schools for each 
county, and for the city of Halifax ; county boards of school 
commissioners appointed by government to regulate the boun- 
daries of sections, distribute the provincial and county moneys, 
receive returns, and generally to supervise the school affairs of 
their district, with the advice of the inspector, who is also 
secretary of the county board, or boards, of commissioners; 
lastly, the trustees, who are elected annually by the rate-payers 
in each school section, whose duties are to assess for and receive 
the school moneys, engage and pay teachers and manage school 
property, and generally to take care of the interests of the 
school within their section. Teachers are required to pass an 
examining board before they can obtain a license, and are 
graded according to their requirements. It is scarcely neces- 
sary to enter into any other 
detail of the provisions of this 
law, which is similar in its gen- 
eral character to those in opera- 
tion in the older provinces in 
the Dominion. It may here be 
observed — and, although only 
a passing remark, it is one 
which redounds much to the 
credit of Kova Scotia — that, 
owing to the mass of the peo- 
ple, both Roman Catholic and 
Protestant, having been allowed 
to cherish their natural, toler- 
ant feelings towards each other, 
an education act has there 
been put in operation which 
makes no provision for " sepa- 
rate schools " of a denominational character ; and yet all 
Christian denominations there work harmoniously together in 
promoting popular education. As was anticipated by those 
most capable of judging correctly, the school act of 1865 
J) roved to be highly acceptable to the people as a whole. The 




ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 531 

country was indeed ripe for the measure, and set about carry- 
ing out its provisions with alacrity. Not but what there 
were clamors of discontent to be heard ; but even these 
were rare, considering the sweeping nature of the changes 
demanded, and soon waxed faint, or became utterly suppressed, 
as the enlightened character of the new law became more ob- 
vious to every comprehension. Immediately on this law 
coming into operation, the improvement, in all that related 
to the common schools of the country, bounded forward with 
amazing celerity. Real school-houses — often notably taste- 
ful in aiDpearance, as well as commodious — sprang up in place 
of the unsightly, wretched dens which, in most parts of the 
province, had long been a reproach to the name of school-house. 
These were fitted up, too, with the modern improvements in the 
way of furniture, apparatus, and other conveniences ; so that the 
pupil might study in comfort, instead of finding his school-hours 
a season of torture. The Council of Public Instruction took care to 
have the country amply supplied,and at the cheapest possible rate, 
with text-books, maps, and apparatus, according to a prescribed 
course ; and the use of these was insisted on. The schools were, 
of course, free to all. This fact, coupled with the inevasible 
conviction that every rate-payer had to contribute to their sup- 
port, whether he directly availed himself of their benefits or not, 
led to the schools being speedily filled — crowded ; so that it was 
found oftentimes difiicult to provide accommodation for pupils 
as rapidly as was required ; and this, too, in districts where 
previously the greater number of the children were running at 
large and growing up in ignorance. The new school-law has 
now been ten years in operation. It is difiicult to procure 
entirely reliable educational statistics of the province for, or just 
previous to, 1865, the last year of the old regime. AVe find 
that, in 1866, — the first year under the new law, — the number 
of pupils registered during the year in the common public 
free schools was seventy-one thousand and fifty-nine. It 
is certain that this was a large advance upon the number of 
pupils in attendance at common schools at any previous period ; 
but just how much of an advance is not easily discoverable. 
We find that, in 1876, the registered attendance of pui)ils had 
increased to ninety-four thousand one hundred and sixtj'-two. In 
1861 the proportion of pupils attending school was, to the Avhole 
population of the province, as one in seven. In 1876 the pro- 
portion was as one in four and one-tenth. This evidence of 
progress assumes much greater significance when we remember 



532 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

the improved character of the schools to which the later attend- 
ance refers. AVe lind a corresponding growth and expansion in 
all which relates to common-school education, during the decade 
in which tlie new law has been in force. During that period 
over one thousand school-houses have been erected, — edifices 
suited to the demands of the age. In 1876 the total expendi- 
tures for common sectional schools was $619,015.62. Of this 
sum $173,396.55 was voted by the provincial Legislature; 
$106,7^0.75 was the contribution of the county funds; and 
the balance of $338,838.32 was raised by direct assessment 
on the sections. It is not, however, through any mere 
dry statistics, however accurate, that we can duly estimate 
the benefits resulting from any such educational revolution as 
that which is being eftected in Nova Scotia through the school 
act of 1865. It would be a superfluous task for us, in these 
pages, to undertake to inform the intelligent reader what 
such benefits must be. Already they manifest themselves 
in a thousand ways, and will continue to do so, let us 
hope, forever; the more certainly since those who are in 
charge of the education of the people's children, in that 
province, do not pretend that their system is yet perfect, 
and fully recognize the imperative demands of progress. For 
higher-class education Nova Scotia is provided with complete 
facilities ; perhaps, within certain limits, almost too ample. 
In all counties which do not contain within their borders some 
collegiate institution, or " special academy," receiving provincial 
aid, there are county academies, in the nature of high schools, 
in which the rudiments of classics, the higher branches of 
mathematics, and usually some foreign modern language, are 
taught ; and these county academies are largely supported by 
legislative aid. By recent act provision is made for the estab- 
lishment of a high school in the city of Plalifax. Among the 
" special academies " above referred to is included the Halifiix 
Deaf and Dumb School, — a very eflSeient institution. Nova 
Scotia has no less than six colleges legally empowered to impart 
instruction and confer degrees, inclusive, that is, of Mount 
Allison, Sackville, just over the New Brunswick boundary, — 
a joint institution of the two provinces. As long ago as 1788 
King's College was founded, at Windsor, in connection with the 
Church of England ; and in this first-born of all the Protestant 
colleges of Canada many of the most eminent sons of the 
maritime provinces received their education. Early in the pres- 
ent century, and in consequence of being at that time precluded 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 533 

from lliG honors of King's College, the dissenters, and notably 
the Presbyterians, ably championed by the late Eev. Thomas 
McCullock, D.D., began to agitate for another college. The 
war which ensued upon this ground was protracted, and not 
very decisive in its results. Pictou Academy grew out of the 
struggle, and was the means of conferring a substantial educa- 
tion upon many j^ouths, especially of the eastern part of 
the province. Soon, however, the Presbyterian interests rather 
converged upon Dalhousie College. The last-named institution 
was founded iu 1820, at Halifax, by the advice and under the 
immediate direction of the Earl of Dalhousie, then governor of 
the province, in whose honor it was named. The appropriations 
for this purpose consisted in part of the " Castine.Fund," so 
called, — the proceeds of the sacking of Fort Castine, in 
Maine, in "the war of 1812;" and in part of direct grants 
from the provincial Legislature. The early history of this in- 
stitution was not a happy one. Several attempts were made, at 
long intervals, to carry out the projects for which the institution 
was founded; but they proved to be spasmodic, and, owing to 
different causes, soon came to collapse. On the first of 
these occasions, after a delay of nearly eighteen years from 
the date of its founding, Dalhousie College Avas fairly banished 
by the provincial government, but with a faculty of Pres- 
byterian professors. Other religious denominations, and 
more especially the Baptists, stoutly remonstrated against 
the denominational complexion thus given to what, they 
contended, was to have been a broad provincial institution. 
The Baptists, deeply stirred by the inspiriting appeals of Rev. 
E. A. Crawley, D.D., promptly resolved to raise to collegiate 
rank the academy which, for some years previously, they had 
been sustaining; at AVolfville. Thus was founded Acadia Col- 
lege, Wolfville, an institution which has ever since continued 
to occupy a very conspicuous position among the educational 
phenomena of Nova Scotia. Almost immediately afterwards, 
in 1840, the Roman Catholics asked for and obtained a charter 
for their College of St. Mary's, at Halifax. Next, the Wes- 
leyan Methodists of the maritime provinces conjointly set up 
their academy at Mount Allison, Sackville ; although this insti- 
tution did not really acquire the collegiate function of conferring 
degrees until 18(i2 ; lastly, in 1855, the Roman Catholics of 
the eastern section of the province obtained a charter for their 
college of St. Francois Xavier, at Antigonish. Each of these 
six colleges receives an annual money grant from the Legisla- 



534 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



ture. Of Dalhousio College, "whose fortune it was to be the 
immediate cause of this multiplicity of collegiate institutions, 
it must be said that, after repeated failures, it was again reor- 
ganized, in 1865, with an entirely new stall* of professors ; ever 

since which time it has been 
in a highly flourishing con- 
dition. All of the other five 
colleges which we have named 
are avowedly " denominational " 
in their character ; King's, 
Anglican ; St. Mary's and St. 
Francois Xavier, Romanist ; 
Acadia, Baptist ; and Mount 
Allison, Methodist : although 
each of them is open to all 
denominations without any ap- 
plication of religious test. Dal- 
housie College is not in any 
sense a denominational insti- 
tution ; although there can 
scarcely be a doubt that the 
Presbyterians, by far the most 
numerous Protestant body in the province, and having no col- 
lege peculiarly their own, contribute to its classes more students 
than any other religious denomination, if not more than all 
others combined. For several years past Dalhousie has taken 
the lead in the annual average number of its students ; closely 
following, Acadia has been next ; the remaining colleges follow 
at varying, but more respectful, distances. During the year 
187G there were engaged in the work of tuition, in these six 
colleges, thirty professors and two tutors, giving instruction to 
two hundred and eleven regularly matriculated students, and to 
one hundred and twenty-nine taking partial courses. At the 
close of the same year, they are represented as together own- 
ing property in real estate and invested in funds to the amount 
of $305,755.57. Their income for the 3"ear, from all sources, 
was $34,921.28, of which sum $10,800 was derived from prov- 
incial legislative grant. Their total expenditure amounted to 
$34,374.99. We find that, in 1876, the total educational ex- 
penditure of Nova Scotia was as follows : — 

For Public Free Schools, including County Academies, $616,- 
015.62, of which were paid by provincial grant $173,396.55 ; 
Normal and Model Schools, $8,714.97, of which were paid by 




ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



535 



provincial grant, $5,009.00; Special Academies, $55,269.00, 
of which were paid by provincial grant, $5,400.00; Colleges, 
$34,394.99, of which were paid by provincial grant, $10,800.00. 
Total, $717,374.58, of which were paid by provincial grant, 
$194,005.95. 

The multiplication of colleges, at the rate of six chartered 
colleges to three hundred thousand souls, — which was about 
the population of the pro^'ince when the last of them was fairly 
launched, — has been, from an early period, a matter of regret 
among many sincere friends of education ; and latterly even 
many of tliose who had been zealous advocates of denomina- 
tional colleges have begun to entertain misgivings as to 
whether this policy had not l)een carried to a needless, if 
not dangerous, excess in Nova Scotia. But since tlien it 
was believed that their usefulness would be extended and 
their standing elevated by making them all members of a single 
provincial university. It was doubtless with this object in 
view that an act was passed through the provincial Legislature, 
in tho session of 1876, establishing the " University of Hali- 
fax," based upon tho model 
of the University of London. 
The new university is to take 
no part iu tho work of instruc- 
tion, its functions being mainly 
those of examining for and 
conferrinof dcirrees : but it is 
hoped that tho other colleges 
will become affiliated with it, 
andthat cventually«/? examina- 
tions will bo made and degrees 
conferre d by this new prov incial 
institution. The medical and 
legal professions have already 
placed themselves in accord 
with the new university ; and 
the senate has appointed ex- 
aminers in law and medicine, 
as well as in arts. It may here be observed that almost 
simultaneously with, but a little in advance of, the founding 
of the university, a medical school was established in Hali- 
fax, which is fairly equipped, and seems enteriug upon a 
very vigorous career. The time appointed for holding the 
first examination by the University of Halifax has not yet 




53G HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

arrived, at the time of this writing ; and it yet remains to 
be seen whether all of the six teaching colleges will become 
cordially affiliated with it, and -sv-hether any of them will 
affiliate at all. Under the university act it is entirely op- 
tional with them to do so, or not. Even their annual grants 
from the provincial treasury are not suspended in consequence 
of the founding of the university ; nor is the continuance 
of them conditional upon their affiliation with it. It may 
readily be inferred, then, that the university must — and al- 
most immediately — prove a very great success, or a signal 
failure, according to the feeling evinced at the outset be- 
tween it and the colleges. Doubtless the design with which 
it was founded was an admirable one, especially under the 
circumstances under which it was founded ; and if that 
design is judiciously carried out its success must be brill- 
iant. However that may be, it will be seen, from what we have 
been enabled to state, that it is with no feeble will, or grudging 
spirit, that Nova Scotia is dealing with the momentous cause of 
education. A deaf and dumb institution has been established 
in Halifax since 1858. It has been highly successful, and is 
attended by about fifty pupils from Nova Scotia and N^ew Bruns- 
wick. Its total cost is only about five thousand two hundred 
and fifty dollars per annum, part of which is granted by the 
Legislature of Nova Scotia, and part by that of New Brunswick, 
in proportion to the number of pupils attending the school from 
each province. In 1814 Capt.Bromby established an industrial 
school for the poor in Halifax, on the Lancasterian system. The 
school was subsequently aided by the Legislature, and Capt. 
Bromby received two hundred pounds in consideration of his 
labors and expense in establishing the school. 

4. Neav Brunswick. The early history of education in 
New Brunswick is pretty much the same as in the pioneer days 
for elementary education. Parish schools were encouraged by 
an act of the Le£>:islaturc in 1823. In 1833 ,a general school 
act was passed, authorizing the rate-payers to appoint three 
trustees in each parish for the purpose of dividing it into 
school sections or districts, and to examine and employ teachers. 
Provided the inhabitants contributed twenty pounds for a male 
and ten pounds for a female teacher, with board, and the schools 
were kept open for at least six months in each year, the Legis- 
lature contributed an equal sum to aid in supporting schools. 
The average grant of each parish, which was not to exceed one 
hundred and sixty pounds, was one hundred and twenty pounds, 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 537 

and the whole amount granted by the Legislature for schools in 
1836 was twelve thousand pounds. In 1837 an act establish- 
ing a county l)oard of examination was passed by the Legisla- 
ture, and by this act the grant to each parish was raised to one 
hundred and eighty pounds. In 1840 another act was passed, 
raising the compensation to teachers ; but in 1840, owing to the 
great depression of the finances of the province, only one 
thousand two hundred pounds were granted to aid parish 
schools ; but the sum was subsequently raised to the usual 
amount. In' 1845 a legislative committee brought in a report 
with a bill for the improvement of parish schools ; but, on the 
suggestions of the committee, the bill was laid over. In 1847, 
however, a new act was passed, by which the county board 
were superseded by the provincial board, consisting of the 
governor and his executive council. Under this regime the 
salaries of teachers were ijxed at eighteen pounds, twenty- 
two pounds, and thirty pounds, according to grade. Books 
and apparatus were also provided, and the grant to a parish 
was raised to six hundred and sixty pounds. In 1852 a 
new act was passed, creating a superintendent of public 
instruction, as also county superintendents. In 1853 St. 
John, N.B., had its training and model schools, and such 
was the progress of education in New Brunswick, that, in 1865, 
there were nine hundred schools in successful operation, besides 
twenty-five superior schools, and twenty denominational and 
Madras schools. In 1871 New Brunswick adopted an entirely 
new public-school system, similar to that of Ontario. This act 
gave rise to a serious digression in the province in regard to 
the power of the New Brunswick Legislature "to make such 
changes in the school law as deprived Roman Catholics of the 
privileges they enjo3'ed at the time of confederation (in 1867), 
in respect of religious education in the common schools." 
This matter was referred to the general government of the 
Dominion, when the competence of the local Legislature to 
deal with the question was confirmed. In 1874 the matter was 
referred to the privy council, but the appeal Avas dismissed 
with costs. Grammar schools have been established in nearly 
all the counties of the province, each of which receives one 
hundred pounds per annum from the Legislature, each being 
supported by fees and subscriptions in addition. The grammar 
schools of New Brunswick date back to 1805 ; and along with 
the history of their development we meet with the rise and 
growth of King's College. In 1873 there were eight hundred 



538 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

niuety-four common schools in operation in the province, 
attended by forty thousand four hundred five pupils, — twenty- 
two thousand three hundred seven boys and eighteen thousand 
nincty-oiglit girls. The provincial grant in aid of these schools 
is about ninety thousand dollars per annum. The number of 
superior schools was forty-one, attended by two thousand 
nine hundred thirty pupils ; and the number of grammar schools 
fourteen, attended by eight hundred eighty-one pupils. The 
Normal School has an attendance of about seventy-five students 
each term. King's College, at Frederickton, formerly known 
as the College of New Brunswick, has an annual income of 
about thirteen thousand five hundred dollars, and an attendance 
of about seventy students annually. In 1836 the Baptists of 
the province established a seminary for higher education in 
Frederickton, which receives an annual grant, from the Legis- 
lature, of one thousand dollars. In 1843 the Wesleyan Meth- 
odists, largely by the commendable liberality of C. F. Allison, 
Esq., erected the Allison Academy for higher education, at 
Sackvillc, and in 1854 the same denomination established a 
female academy at the same place. The institution receives an 
annual grant, from the Legislature of New Brunswick, of two 
thousand four hundred dollars, and from the Legislature of 
Nova Scotia one thousand dollars. The Presb3^terians have 
established a college at AVoodstock, and a flourishing academy 
at Chatham. The Roman Catholics have also an academy at 
Chatham, as well as St. Basit's Academy, which receives grants 
from the Legislature. There are also other educational insti- 
tutions in the province of high merit ; and in this particular 
NeAV Brunswick is keeping pace Avith the foremost of the 
provinces. The total annual grant of the Legislature for the 
support of education in the province amounts to two hundred 
thousand dollars. 

5. Prince Edward Island. The first steps towards en- 
couraging education in the Province of Prince Edward Island 
was made in 1804. "In that year the English secretary of state, 
in a despatch, gave directions to appropriate the rent of the War- 
ren Farm (government property) towards the support of a school 
in Charlottetown. But it was not until the year 1819 that a direct 
appropriation of these rents was made in the erection of a na- 
tional school, which was opened in 1821. In 1808, the legis- 
lative grant for education in the island Avas three hundred and 
twenty-eight pounds ; in 182*J it was only five hundred and two 
pounds; in 1832, five hundred and sixty-three pounds; in 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



539 



1839, six hundred and five j)ounds ; in 1841, including a grant 
to the academy, it was one thousand two hundred and seventy- 
two pounds ; in 1845, one thousand seven hundred and twenty- 
five pounds ; in 1850, one thousand eight hundred and twenty- 
five pounds ; in 1854, after the passing of the free education 
acr, the grant was raised to the munificent sum of nine thou- 
sand and thirty-eight pounds ; in 1855, to eleven thousand nine 
hundred and nine pounds, and in 1856 to twelve thousand 
pounds. On the first distribution of the lands in the island, 
thirty acres Averc reserved in each township for a school-master. 
No public school was, however, opened until 1821, when the 
national school referred to was opened in Charlottetown. 
Some years afterwards a Board of Education was appointed for 
the island ; and, in 18oG, a central academy was also opened in 
Charlottetown. In the following year (1837) a visitor or su- 
perintendent of schools was appointed for the island. In 1848 
a visitor was appointed for each county; and in 1852 the first 
act establishing free schools in a British colony was passed by 



the Legislature. 



It gave a great 



stimulus to education in the 
island. In 1853 a visitor for 
the whole island was again ap- 
pointed. In 1856 a normal 
school was established at Char- 
lottetown, and in 1857 an agi- 
tation arose as to the use of the 
Bible in the public schools. In 
1861 the Legislature passed an 
act to consolidate the laws re- 
lating to education in the island, 
and to improve the condition 
of public schools, as well as to 
authorize the use of the Bible 
in them. It also passed an 
act to establish the Prince of 
Wales' College, in honor of his 
royal highness' visit to Prince Edward in that year. In 1863 
the Legislature made other improvements in the school s^^s- 
tem, and provided for grammar schools instead of district 
schools. It prescribed that the grammar school-masters should 
hold a certificate of the highest class, and also "be qualified to 
teach the Latin, Greek, and French languages, in such pro- 
ficiency as the provincial Board of Education shall deem requi- 




540 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

site." In 18G4 the school act was again amended, and also the 
act relating to the Prince of Wales' College. In 1868 the whole 
of the acts relating to education in the island were consolidated. 
The progress of education has been as follows : — 

Year. Schools. Pupils. 

In 1837 there were in the island 51 attended by 1,650 

In 1841 " 121 " 4,356 

In 1848 " 131 " 4,512 

In 1852 " 133 " 4,760 

In 1855 " 270 " 12,133 

In 1861 •' 302 " 11,500 

In 1863 " 305 " 12,205 

In 1868 " 339 " 13,350 

In 1869 " 360 " 14,867 

In 1871 " 381 " 15,795 

In 1871 " 384 " 12,235 

In 1872 " 392' " 16,257 

G. British Columbia is the youngest j^rovince in the Do- 
minion educationally^ and yet she bids fair to excel in this par- 
ticular. " The act of organizing her system of education was 
only passed on the 11th of April, 1872, and the first report on 
the condition of the schools was issued in September. John 
Jessup, Esq., the first superintendent of education for the prov- 
ince of British Columbia, appointed under the new act, was 
formerly a successful student in the normal school in Ontario. 
He has, as Ave see from his report, not failed to introduce into 
the British Columbia schools many features of the Ontario 
school system, and the law and most of the official regulations 
are almost verbatim transcripts (as far as they go) of those in 
force in that province. The text-books used, also, are chiefly 
the same as those authorized for use in Ontario. There is a 
provincial Board of Education, which is authorized to examine 
and give certificates to public-school teachers, and to prescribe 
general regulations for the schools, etc. The legislative educa- 
tional grant, for all purposes, is forty thousand dollars a year. 
Of this sum, eight thousand three hundred and forty-six dollars 
were expended for school-house building and repairs. The 
trustees have no power to levy rates, but all the expenses of the 
schools are defrayed, upon the certificate of the superintend- 
ents, out of the forty-thousand-dollar grant. There were in 
British Columbia (and Vancouver Island) twenty-six school 
districts in 1873 ; in one half of them only schools were re- 

■ Including: these arc fifteen grammar schools, with nine hundred and five pupils, and 
one normal school, with seventy-two pupils. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 541 

ported, and these Ave re attended by five hundred and seventy- 
three boys and four hundred and fifty-five gh'ls ; total, one 
thousand and twenty-eight. The school population reported 
is from eighteen hundred to two thousand. In 1833 Vancouver 
Island was first occupied by the Hudson Bay Company, and 
Victoria, the capital, founded. The capital Avas selected by 
James Douglas, Esq., the governor, on behalf of the Hudson 
Bay Company. In 1843 the l)oundary line betAVcen the United 
States and Avhat is now knoAvn as British Columbia Avas 
determined. In 1849 Vancouver Island AA^as conditionally 
granted by the queen to the company, for the purpose of set- 
tlement. In the year 1859 gold was first publicly known to 
exist in the valley of the Eraser river (British Columbia 
proper), and in that year the occupation of Vancouver Island 
was resumed by the queen. The island, with British Columbia, 
was then erected into two British croAvu colonies, with separate 
boundaries, but under one government. Though private efibrts 
were made to establish schools as early as possible, nothing Avas 
done in that direction l3y the government until 1869, Avhen a 
" Common School Ordinance " Avas passed by the governor in 
council. This ordinance was amended and its provisions were 
extended in 1870. In 1872 a comprehensive act AA^as passed by 
the Legislature (to Avhich aa^c have referred), based upon the 
public-school act of Ontario. This act A\^as slightly amended in 
1873." — [Dr. Hodgins.'] Since that date education in the Pa- 
cific provinces has been moving steadily forAvard Avith rapid pace. 
7. The act upon which the present sj^stem of common-school 
education in Manitoba is based Avas passed during the first 
session of the first Parliament of that proAnnce, in 1871. Pre- 
vious to the passing of this act there Avere one or more schools 
in each of the English-speaking parishes. These schools were 
under the direct control of the incumbent of the parish, and, 
with the exception of Iavo, Avere all Church of England schools. 
Some of them Avere entirely supported by the Church Missionary 
Society. As to the rest, the teachers' salaries, as Avell as 
all expenses incurred in the erection, furnishing, and re- 
pairing of the school-houses, were defrayed by local col- 
lections and subscriptions, aided during the past fcAV years 
by a grant from the diocesan fund. In several of the parishes, 
Avhich are not connected Avitli the Church Missionary Society, 
the schools have been carried on for the past fcAV years under 
great ditficulties. In these localities the support of the school 
devolved almost entirely upon the people residing in them ; 



542 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 




and when it is borne in mind that these parishes, always small 
and by no means wealthy, suffered heavily from the ravage of 

the grasshoppers, the diffi- 
culties of providing a reason- 
able salary for the teachers and 
keeping up the school-houses 
will be easily understood and 
api^reciated. Indeed some of 
our schools have been fre- 
quently closed, for the simple 
reason that the teacher's salary 
could not be raised ; and in 
more than one case the clergy- 
man of the parish has under- 
taken the school duties himself, 
and devoted, free of charge, 
a few hours each day to the 
important duty of instructing 
the youthful members of his 
flock in the different branches 
of a common-school education. 

As already intimated, the Legislature established a system 
of education for the province in 1871, and placed it under the 
control of a provincial Board of Education and two suj^erin- 
tendents, — one a Protestant and the other a Roman Catholic. 
It also gave to the board six thousand dollars to assist it in 
maintaining the schools. There are about twenty Protestant 
schools, attended by nettrly eight hundred and fifty pujjils, and 
the same number of Roman Catholic schools, attended by nearly 
seven hundred and fifty pupils. 

8. In connection with our remark on the educational insti- 
tutions of the Dominion we may appropriately add a few words 
concerning the newspaper press, which may be regarded as one 
of the most powerful educators in all countries. "• The ehxborate 
machinery, wide circulation, and extensive influence of the 
newspaper press in the present day, are so uniformly felt and 
generally acknowledged that reflection appears at once super- 
fluous. On both continents has its presence become a power 
alike for the government and discipline, as well as a faultless 
index of the advancement and enlightenment, of the respective 
peojiles. In the United States it is found in its perfect and 



' Compiled from a sketcli •written by James V. Wright, Esq., of Monti-eal. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 543 

completest vigor, holding conspicuous place among the chief 
and multifarious mediums of popular education, for which that 
country maintains so distinguished a precedence. Nor do we 
find Europe in scarcely any material particular behind. England, 
with the rest of Great Britain, not to speak of Germany, France, 
and the neighboring free countries, has aroused herself Avithin 
the century to the benefit of a sound and complete newspaper- 
literature, and pushed forward in the several departments with 
a marvellous — we had almost said magic — potency and speed. 
Closely following in the van is the new Dominion of Canada. 
Brilliant in native intellectual material for the purpose ; fertile 
in subject-matter for whatever may legitimately occupy the pen 
of journalism ; strong in sense of right and justice in all that 
joertains to her true liberties ; rich in resources, and broad in 
acres, — she has already won for herself a name in the field of 
newspaper, and even less ephemeral, literature, to be emulated 
if not envied. These are facts needing only to be investigated 
to be apparent. Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia, and New Bruns- 
wick, comprising in aggregate a population of four millions, 
with a total area of slightly over three hundred and seven 
thousand square miles, lead the way. Prince Edward Island, 
Manitoba, and British Columbia, — infant provinces, the two 
latter, but no less containing the nucleus of a powerful press, — 
follow anon in the wake. Newfoundland, as yet not a part of 
the Dominion, has from early time in her history had her press, 
and we shall, for the purposes now in hand, speak of her as 
one of the Dominion. In no part of the world has journalism 
attained to a tithe of the growth and influence that it has in 
the United States. Our republican friends have indeed ac- 
quainted themselves to the fullest extent Avith its capabilities for 
good or evil, and, with an energetic appreciation of its benefits 
at once characteristic, have in a manner made it their idol. We 
refer more especially to the metropolitan press. By an appli- 
cation of enormous capital and equivalent talent they have 
succeeded in elevating that section of journalism within their 
range, to a very first place, not only as a furnisher of news 
and disseminator of opinion, but in a far more important 
arena, viz., the education of the masses. A no insignificant 
quota of the American people make the newspaper their chief 
means of general instruction, as well as transient information ; 
these, too, are among their most intelligent citizens, holding 
often responsible ofiices of trust. Nor is this matter of wonder 
when we consider the fact that, in the average American city 



5M 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 




dail}^ nearly every subject is intelligently dealt with. Science 
and art, social and iDolitical econom}^ together with the thou- 
sand other topics pertaining to 
a round of popular education, 
have each their Avritcr in the 
editorial staff; each is handled 
])y men of tried erudition and 
capacity ; and each is presented 
to the less tutored reader in a 
[)lain matter-of-fact style and 
phase, devoid of technicalities, 
that mio'htin vain be Gouo'htfor 
in the ponderous volumes and 
learned disquisitions whence 
they are gleaned. And this is 
well. Life, in this age of rapid 
movement and fierce commer- 
cial combat generally, is too 
short for physical working hu- 
manity to sound all depths of 
learning, whether it be of art, politics, or aught else. The 
daily paper furnishes the substance and the kernel, which is all 
that is required. We have touched thus long on a jDoint that 
may seem irrelevant, not from any peculiar predilections for 
American journalism over our own, but that our own may 
imitate it in all that may be esteemed essential and deserv- 
ing. To educate, as well as amuse and merely inform, should 
be the aim of our metropolitan newspapers especially ; and 
with the growing thirst for knowledge among the masses, such, 
if not already, will soon be absolutely demanded. Journalism 
was never in a condition more prosperous throughout Canada 
and the Dominion at large than at present. Proportional to 
our population and extent of settled territory it has few or no 
compeers. The number and quality of the papers pul)lished, 
if records are an authority, are vastly in advance of those in 
the United States, at a time when the two populations were 
equal. No people appreciate a free j^ress, as a whole, more 
completely than do the people of Canada ; yet that apprecia- 
tion, it may be said with truth, has ever been guided by an ear 
and eye to the morality of that press. Hence it has long l)een 
proverbial that no press stands higher when consulted by 
strangers abroad as an authority for tacts. 

9. Canadian journalism found its first foothold in Quebec 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



54:5 



province, to which section, inasmuch as it was the first to feel 
the genial liand of civilization, we are indebted for the found- 
ing of nearly all our most \aluable institutions. The condition 
of the press here, however, has always been peculiar. Differ- 
ing widely in taste and sentiment from their Teutonic brethren, 
the French have stamped that difference in nothing more 
indelibly than in that of their ncAvspapers. Few care to dis- 
cuss the politics of the day, save such leading French dailies 
as are found in jMontrcal, Quebec, and a few leading towns. 
Polite in idea and manner, and enthusiastic in religion, the 
French Canadian vindicates these, his national characteristics, 
in the tone of his journal. Poetry, polite essaj's, and religious 
topics, form the "general make-up" of its columns. Among 
the English papers broader principles obtain. Politics are 
frequently handled with vigor and acumen by even the most 
backwoods weekly ; while the 
Montreal and Quebec city dailies 
are written in a style, and dis- 
cuss every topic of the day 
with an ability, unsurpassed any- 
where in the world. The same 
may apply to the French jiapers 
of those cities. The diver- 
gency of races and language 
has operated not a little against 
the success of journalism in 
Quebec province,, the circula- 
tion in either tongue l)eing 
much retarded thereljy, a fact 
by no means encouraging to the 
talented men generally to be 
found at their head. With the 
increase, however, of British 
settlement, matters will undoubtedly right themselves, as the 
increased influence and circulation of the English press of 
Montreal since confederation sufficiently proves. Next to 
Quebec the maritime provinces may claim credit for building 
up and perpetuating journalism. Nova Scotia had ii paper in 
1769, and New Brunswick and Newfoundland each possessed 
newspapers as far back as 1800. None of these, however, 
have survived to the present. The newspapers of St. John, 
Halifax, and Frederickton, have always been well edited, are at 
present numerous, and have substantial circulation. Their 




54B HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

press, anterior to confederation, was conducted on no specially 
broad principles ; trade, shipping, and agriculture, entirely 
occupying its columns. Confederation, however, has given 
the press of these provinces, in common with all other and 
kindred institutions, an impetus wholly unlooked for ; impor- 
tant social and political discussions, and schemes of fmaiicial 
economy that may hasten our national perfecting and consolida- 
tion, now uniformly grace its pages ; while the general m:ike-up 
and style is quite equal to that of its confreres anywhere in the 
Dominion. Ontario is the journalist's harvest-field. There the 
newspaper is racy of the soil, and there the intelligent editor 
finds his surest reward. A freedom of social and political dis- 
cussion, an elasticity in general sentiment, and a trenchancy of 
debate generally, quite unknoAvn in the sister provinces, renders 
his task at least brilliant, if not directly agreeable ; while 
the stronger tendencies of the people for newspaper liter- 
ature stimulates his circulation and augments his coffers. The 
progress of the press in Ontario has been something unpre- 
cedented. Statistics have been published which show that the 
daily and weekly circulation of the papers in Toronto alone, in 
1870, exceeded that of the entire United Kingdom of Great 
Britain in 1820, if we except the London "Times" in the 
enumeration. The rise of journalism in the "garden of Canada," 
as Ontario has been aptly termed, would fill a chapter beyond 
our limits. Thrift and industry are the watchwords of its peo- 
ple ; and public schools being established on a basis of liberal- 
ity known only in the United States and Prussia, education is 
everj^where spread broadcast, and the daily and weekly paper 
finds a welcome in every home ; the people think for themselves, 
read for themselves, and, in all things essential, act for them- 
selves, and a knowledge of the local and general politics of the 
country is known to every child from the cradle. The first 
newspaper in Canada, the Quebec "Gazette," was founded in 
17G4. It was in existence to within a short time, — the aged 
parent and acknowledged patriarch of the press of British 
America. The second was the Halifax Weekly "Recorder," 
started in 1769 by one Anthony Henry, and edited by Capt. 
Buckley. It has long ceased to exist. Next in order is' the 
"Montreal Gazette," established by one Mcsplets, from Phila- 
delphia, in 1778, and originally printed in French and English. 
It may be curious here to note, as illustrative of the mutations 
incident to time and circumstance, that this paper, chiefly known 
through the greater portion of its career for an unbending advo- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 547 

cacy of conservatism and monarchy in their most pronounced 
phases, is indebted for its origin and birth to an American rev- 
ohitionist, an American annexation movement, and an American 
invasion of Canada. Mesplets, a practical printer, came into 
Montreal as an attache of a deputation sent hither from the 
Philadelphia Congress, directed to follow in the Avake of Mont- 
gomery's army, which occupied the city in 1775. The ol^ject 
of the deputation was to endeavor to estrange the Canadians 
from their allegiance, and, by specious overtures, lure them to a 
peaceful declaration for the government of the United States. 
Dr. Benjamin Franklin, one of the deputation, and than whom 
none knew l)cttcr the uses of the press in such an emergency, 
suggested the bringing with them the complete plant of a print- 
ing-office, and, by manifestoes, circulars, and such-like, to spread 
broadcast among the inhabitants the objects of their mission and 
the beauties of annexation in particular. The experiment — Mes- 
plets doing the mechanical work — was tried, and, it is needless 
to say, failed signally ; the deputation returned home ; the printer 
alluded to, however, remaining in Montreal, where he continued 
the office, located in what is now known as " Custom-House 
Square," and a short time subsequently put forth an eight- 
column weekly sheet called the " Gazette." It w^as long the 
only paper in the province, next to its namesake of Quebec. 
The history of these two papers, as may be easily inferred, is 
replete with interest, they having been pioneers in the field of 
provincial journalism, and surviving every vicissitude of fortune 
that falls inevitably to the lot of all that Avould mould and lead 
public opinion. Both journals have passed through man}^ 
ownerships since establishment, and represented from time to 
time, especially the Quebec " Gazette," nearly every shade of 
political and social opinion. The " Gazette," of Montreal, under 
the late Robert Abraham, an accom[)lished Avriter, first came 
prominently into pul)lic favor. James Moir Fcrres and others 
succeeded, but with varied success, until it passed into the 
management of the late firm of Lowe & Chamberlin. Under 
their control it became at once the acknowledged and energetic 
organ of the conservative party in Queljcc province, and con- 
tinues such, l)ut Avith largely increased favor, to the present 
time. In 1870 the Messrs. T. & K. White, formerly of the 
Hamilton " Spectator," assumed possession, changing the shape, 
and improving the general make-up of the paper. Mr. Thomas 
White, Jr., is the editor-in-chief, and under him the "Gazette" 
has greatly advanced in circulation and influence ; the vigor, 



548 HISTORY OF dominion of CANADA, 

brilliancy, and high tone of its editorials commending it to the 
respectable classes everywhere, while its prompt and accurate 
news reports render it of more than ordinary value in that con- 
nection generally. The " Gazette " is the oldest living paper in 
the Dominion. Following in the order of dates we turn for the 
moment to Ontario. In consulting the intei-esting volume by 
the Eev. H. Scadding, D.D., entitled " Toronto of Old," we 
hud the "Niagara Constellation" existed in 179U, and was un- 
doubtedly the next paper published in British America after 
the Montreal "Gazette." The "York Gazette" followed three 
years later. The " Constellation " continued several years, and 
was the only paper of general information in the then wilder- 
ness of the west, known as Upper Canada ; it has long ceased 
to exist. The Halitax " Royal Gazette " came next, in 1801. It 
was the official organ of the government, and as such continues. 
The " Quebec Mercury " follows next in order, and was issued 
first in 1805, by the late Thomas Cary, father of the present 
proprietor. The " Mercury " had long extensive influence 
in the country previous to the union of Upper and Lower 
Canada, in 1840; it is still vigorous. In the early day's men- 
tioned it was a compendium of all that pertained to news, 
politics, and debate. Copies of the "Mercury," from the first 
lunnber, ])ound in volume, are to be found in not a few of our 
public libraries ; and so curious and valuable were the 
early numbers considered, that they have been deemed 
worthy a place in the British Museum, London, where they may 
noAv be seen. The Quebec "Le Canadien," founded in 180(), 
succeeded, and still circulates among the French portion of the 
ancient capital. The St. John's "Royal Gazette and New- 
foundland Advertiser " was established in 1807, and, similar to 
its namesake of York (Toronto) and Halifax, was the govern- 
ment official organ. It still exists. Ushered into being in 
1809, and next in order of establishment, we find the "Mon- 
treal Herald." This journal, founded by a wholesale merchant 
named Kay, subsequently, in 1824, lapsing into the hands of 
j\Ir. Archibald Ferguson, as the organ of the Presbyterian 
body, and the property still later of a well-known citizen named 
Wier, has, in common with the Montreal " Gazette," long 
wielded an important and wide influence, and may be said to 
have disputed, through a protracted career, the palm with the 
latter paper for public ftivor. The " Herald " was long edited by 
a gentleman of distinguished ability, named Kinnear ; and to 
his ready and trenchant, but polished, pen may be attributed 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



549 



the high position it attained to in his day, and which, with kin- 
dred qualities in its successors, it has never lost since. jMr. 
Adam Thoni held the management some time previously to ]\lr. 
Kinnear, and his abihty did conspicuous service to its columns. 
The paper has long since l)een the organ-in-chief in Quel)ec 
province of the English-speak- 
inof section of the extreme lib- 
eral party, the battles of whom 
it has fought through good and 
and evil report, with a consist- 
ency and firmness that may be 
saicl to have won the respect 
even of opponents. The "Her- 
ald " is owned by a publishing 
company. The Hon. E. Goti" 
Penny, now of the Dominion 
senate, and long a partner in 
the concern, is the chief editor. 
The " Herald " editorials are con- 
spicuous for an easy, argument- 
ative style, in which all shadow 
of the sensational or line writ- 
ing is rigorously eschewed. 
Commercial topics in partic- 
ular receive from it a diligent oversight, which has ren- 
dered its columns in relation thereto a valua])lc desideratum 
among merchants. Its discussions, generally, arc marked l)y 
caution, and a careful regard to the truth of statements before 
using them ; an element in the paper, we need hardly say, 
which has had its duo reward in an increased confidence among 
readers of all classes, and "with it a proportionably increased 
circulation. Next in order of establishment we have the 
Kingston (Ont.) ''Chronicle," — to v.'hieh has been added the 
titlc'of '"News" — dpiing 1810. This paper is the oldest that 
has co77f/'ir!!ed to live in Ontario. It is also the seventh oldest in 
the Dominion. Yfhile its contemporaries one by one have 
dropped away, the "Chronicle and Nev/s"has stood its ground 
through all vicissitude, and is still fresh and vigorous. Mr. James 
Shannon is the present proprietor, and his paper has a substan- 
tial ciui'ulation. The " Halifax Acadian Ilecorder," founded in 
1813, is the next oldest living journal. Wo might ftpeak, to 
almost endless length, of papers founded at an early period, 
cveryvv'here from Ontario to Newfoundland, but which ceased 




550 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

almost with their birth. Such recapitulation is unnecessary. 
AYe have seen that tlie Niagara " ConsteUation " (17911) was 
the lirst after the Montreal "Gazette." A sliort-livecl paper, 
the Canada "Guardian," edited hy Joseph AV^ilcox, was pub- 
lished in Toronto in 1807. The Niagara "" Spectator" followed 
in 1819. This was a stirring paper and lived some years. It 
was edited by one Robert Gourlay, a state prisoner incarcerated 
in Niagara jail. Gourlay aired with vehemence his political 
wrongs in the " Spectator," and was subsequently banished. 
The next paper was the "Colonial Advocate," established in 
Toronto, in 1824, by the political agitator, William Lyon Mac- 
kenzie. Mackenzie assailed the Tory government of the day 
with unsurpassed virulence, and for it his presses and types 
were thrown into Toronto Bay, in 1826. He subsequently 
founded the "Message," which dropped when shortly after 
he went into banishment, Ijut resumed on his return. 

10. Among other journals estaljlishcd, but not forgotten, were 
the "Examiner," "British Colonist," "Canadian llevicw," "Loyal- 
ist," etc., Toronto " Pilot," " Advertiser," " Telegraph," " Trans- 
script," and others of even more early date. jNIontreal, Three 
Rivers, Quebec, and the maritime provinces, have all had, simi- 
larly, papers, from time to time, of note ; but such live only in the 
past. After the ILdifax "Acadian Recorder," the oldest liviug 
paper is the Halifax "Chronicle," and with it the Brockville (Out.) 
" Recorder," each founded in 1820. The " Chronicle " is edited by 
a gentlemen well known in political circles, and a distinguished 
parliamentarian, — Hon. Charles Annand. The "Brockville 
Recorder" is the second oldest ?cee/.'?y paper in Ontario. It is 
edited now by Leaver & Southworth. (An evening edition of 
the "Recorder" is now in its third year.) The "St. Cather- 
ine's Journal " stands next, having been established in 1824 ; it 
has now a daily. " La INlinerve," Montreal, follows in order, 
having ])cen founded in 182G by the late Hon. Louis M. Morin. 
It stands hi<>:h as the leading ormm of French conservatism in 
Quebec province. Its editorials are conspicuous for vigor 
and point. Mr. Duvernay, the editor, has long been kno^vii 
m the ]:)olitical warfare of parties in the province. Mr. Dan- 
seret^u is also associated in the conduct of its columns. The 
Toronto "Christian Ciuardian" was established in 1829, and is 
the next ; it is a weekly j(jurnal in the interest of th(i Wes- 
leyan Methodist body, and was long conducted by the founder 
of the Ontario common-school system, the Rev. Dr. Edgarton 
Ryerson ; the Rev. E. H. Dewart is present editor. The " Guar- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 551 

dian," after forty-seven years, still preserves its ancient vigor and 
usefulness. The Woodstock (N.B.) " Carleton SentineP' and 
Pictou (Out.) "Gazette," Avcrc the next, in 1830, succeeded by 
the Col)urg (Out.) "Star" in 1831; the Yarmouth (N.S.) 
"Herald," and St. Andrew's (N.B.) " Standard," followed in 
1833 ; the Sherbrooke (Que.) " Gazette " was also established 
in this year. The " Gazette " is among our very best rural 
journals, being well edited, and having a wide influence in 
what is known as the " Eastern Townships ;" Bradford Brothers 
are the pul)lishers. The Kingston " British Whig,'' estal)lished 
in 1834, follows the "Gazette," and with it we couple the 
Belleville "Intelligencer," founded in the same year. The 
" Whig " claims notice as being the first daUij paper established 
in Ontario ; and as such has the high honor of being the father 
of that order of journalism in the West. Dr. Barker, one of the 
oldest settlers of Kingston, and well known in Canada political 
circles, was the editor and proprietor down to 1871 ; it is now 
conducted by his nephew, Mr. E. J. Barker Pense, and is the 
Kingston organ of the reform party. The " Whig " editorials 
are forcible, and the status of the journal first-class. The 
Belleville " Intelligencer," also 1834, was long owned by Mr. 
McKcnzie Bowell, sometime grand master of the Ontario 
Orange Association ; it has latterly become a daily, and is pub- 
lished by a joint-stock company ; — 1834 appears to have been a 
period of newspaper founding, as the Prescott " Telegraph " 
and Perth " Courier " were also started in that j'car. Proceed- 
ing in order, we have the St. John (N.B.) "News," established 
in 1836, and the Halifax "Christian Messenger," in the same 
year. In bringing onr review of journalism down thus far, we 
have preserved the dates of establishment in consecutive order 
as near as possible, link by link, from the first, in 1704, to the 
two last papers named. We will notice now, but perhaps in 
less order, the papers that remain, to which age, etc., would 
seem to attach any interest. The "Ottawa Citizen" was 
established in 1841, and was long known as "Bell's paper," 
having been conducted many years by the late Robert Bell, 
M.P.P. for Carleton County (Out.), previous to confedera- 
tion. The Toronto "Globe" appears next, and stands first, 
and preeminently the prince of newspapers in the Dominion. 
Established in 1*844 by the late Peter Brown, in conjunction 
with his son, the present Hon. George Brown, as a tri-weekly, 
and shortly afterwards as a daily, it has gone on increasing in 
circulation and political power, until its name has become 



552 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



a synonyme of whatever is strong in Canadian journalism. 
The " Globe," from its inception, has been in the interest 




of the reform party of the country ; and has l)ecn the 

means of advancing not a few 
of that shade of politics to posi- 
tion and preferment, not the 
least conspicuous of Avhom may 
bo named the proprietor him- 
self. The name of the Hon. 
George Brown is so com- 
pletely one with that of the 
"Globe," that to disassociate 
them would l)e to rend the fab- 
ric. It would be impossible 
in our space to give even an 
outline of the career and man- 
agement of this newspaper ; 
sufnce it, that it is inmiediately 
controlled by the " Globe Pul)- 
lishing Compan}'," of which 
jMr . Brown is managing director 
and principal shareholder. Mr. Gordon Brown, brother of the 
former, has been for many years one of its chief writers. The 
Hon. AVilliam]\IcDougal], long conspicuous in Canadian politics, 
and sometime governor of ]\Ianitoba, Avas also for years a prin- 
cipal writer. The " Glo1)o " is distinguished for keen and 
forcibly written editorials ; and what, perhaps, has more than 
anything else given its present position, — the promptness, ful- 
ness, and accm-acy of its telegraphic news reports. No lal^or 
nor expense is spared when a piece of fresh news is to be ob- 
tained. It has its branch offices in all the principal cities, and 
telegraphic correspondence in all the towns of the Dominion, 
also in London, England, cable telegrams from which may 
almost alwaj'S l>c seen in its columns. With such adjuncts it 
is not surprising that the " Glol^e " takes the lead of all contem- 
poraries. With the reform party it is needless to say it has 
ever been the pronounced mouth-piece and oracle ; and to them 
it is indebted in largest measures for its success. The Montreal 
Weekly "Witness" commenced in 184G, passing successfully 
into tri-weekly in 185G and daily in 18G0, and, wo scarcely need 
say, has attained a high place among our Dominion newspapers. 
The " Witness " is essentially a religious temperance daily, and 
the conspicuously moral tone of its columns, coupled vfith its 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 553 

vigor from its inception in the. cause of temperance, has in a large 
degree secured for it its present position. The Hamilton 
" Spectator," established in 18^S hy the late Robert R. Smiley, 
"was long the leading conservative paper in Ontario ; it is still 
vigorous, and lias a large circulation ; it is owned by LaAvson, 
iMcCulloch & Co. The Hamilton "Times," London "Adver- 
tiser," Lond(m "Herald," and London "Free Press," Toronto 
"Leader," Branford " Courier," and a long list of minor papers, 
daily and weekly, were established l)etween 1848 and the suc- 
ceeding decade. The papers named arc tirst class in their kind, 
and comprise some of the best enterprise and talent to be found 
in the Dominion. We append a few words upon one or two 
daily papers of quite recent date, that have taken, both in in- 
fluence and circulation, a leading stand in their respective local- 
ities, in connnon with their contemporaries already mentioned. 
The St. John, N.B., "Daily Telegraph," established in 1865, 
deserves special mention, not less for its sound political and 
commercial standing than for the high literary character it has 
maintained since its inception. jNIr. AVilliain Elder, a gentle- 
man of distinguished culture, has long been its chief editor and 
proprietor. The Montreal " Evening Star " w\as established in 
1809, and claims attention for the independent stand it has 
taken since its establishment. On all matters, social or political, 
the " Star " has exhibited an energy of discussion and a freedom 
of opinion at once commendable. The paper was established 
by Messrs. Marshall & Co., but almost immediately after was 
purchased by Mr. Hugh Graham, a young man nearly connected 
Avith the late E. H. Parsons of the old "Evening Telegraph," a 
writer sufficiently known in his day. After long connection 
with the tiuancial department of the "Telegraph," and subse- 
quently of the "Gazette," Graham entered upon his enterprise 
of building up the "Star." How well he has succeeded, the 
paper to-day tells; for, after much struggle, small beginnings, 
and fiercest rivalry, it stands forth at once the equal of any 
evening journal in the Dominion. This is attested by its circu- 
lation, which has so largely increased within the past two years. 
The "Star" is printed on a "Prestonian" press, capable of 
turning off ten thousand copies per hour. The paper, from tho 
first, has commended itself to the masses by the curt, matter-of- 
fact style of its editorials, and the vigor with which it advocates 
the interests of the workingman. In a word, the " Star" is 
one of a class of journals to l)e found in every large metropolis, 
and to the well-being of which its iircseucc is sufficiently 



554 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



essential. The Toronto "Mail," established in 1870, is the 
second most extensive journal in point of size, circulation, and 
influence in Ontario. Like its rival, the "Globe," it expends 
large sums in obtaining latest news. It has its agencies in 
Montreal, and some other principal cities ; and the telegrams 

and general reports found in its 
columns are marked by promp- 
titude and accuracy. The "Mail" 
is the organ of the conservative 
l)arty in Ontario ; and perhaps 
on no journal can a greater 
amount of editorial talent be 
found. It has a substantial 
circulation throughout the Do- 
minion, and its influence is daily 
and deservedly on the increase. 
It is printed l)y a company, of 
which T. C. Patterson is mana- 
ger ; this gentleman is also edi- 
tor-in-chief. We close this 
sketch b}'' briefly remarking on 
the strides assumed by journal- 
ism in Canada within the last 
ten years. Statistical figures might be adduced to exhibit what 
those strides, at once so substantial in themselves, have actually 
been ; such, however, w^e believe unnecessary ; facts are patent 
enough to every observer. The increase in immigration, the 
opening np of railway communication, the extension and per- 
fecting of telegraphy, and, more than all, the completeness and 
cfiicicncy of the school systems throughout the Dominion, have 
worked changes not to bo mistaken. Evciy city has its round 
of dailies ; every village and hamlet, its one to three weeklies. 
These are the sure indices of national progress and enlighten- 
ment, the unerrins: recristers that mark our advancement as a 
people now, and shall continue to do so in the future. 




ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 555 



CHAPTER XLII. 

THE DOMINION OF CANADA — (<:on!'i/i?/e<Z). 

GENEUAL SUMMARY FROM 1867 TO 1878. A REVIEW. 

1. We have already sketched sonic of the more general 
affairs of the Dominion since confederation, and at this point, 
before passing on to notice the more recent events under the 
administration of Lord Dulferin, we may review the wliole sub- 
ject. The British North American Act of LSG? abrogated the 
constitutions of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Canada, and 
enacted that henceforward they should be federally united into 
one dominion under the crown of Great Britain and Ireland, 
with a constitution similar to that of Great Britain ; and al- 
though, as before observed, these provinces were so united at 
their own request, yet it is true that the scheme originated in 
the political necessities of the Province of Canada. The mari- 
time provinces had desired a union apart from Canada, and had 
entered into negotiations with that end in view ; and it is no 
overstatement of facts to say that the more inliuential province 
seized upon the opportunity to effect the broader union, and 
thus escape from local embarrassments, the nature of which 
has been fully described in previous chapters. It is still be- 
lieved by many good and able men of the maritime provinces, 
that had this lesser union preceded the greater, the latter would 
have resulted with greater advantage to Nova Scotia, New 
Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island. The writer humbly 
shares in this opinion, but does not find an insurmountable ditH- 
culty in the scheme of a maritime union yet to be effected. 

2. The Dominion of Canada, thus brought into existence, 
required skilful guidance. The " rights of the provinces " was 
a very probable question under the new rcrjime. However, 
care had been taken to guard against this, and Sir John A. 
Macdonald, in referring to this matter in the light of the United 
States Constitution, said, "They declared by their constitu- 
tion that each State was a sovereignty in itself, and that all the 
powers incident to a sovereignty belonged to each State, except 
those powers which by the constitution were conferred upon 
the general government and Congress." Then, speaking of the 



!)ij(j HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

Federal Union of British America, he sa}'s, " Here we have 
adopted a dili'erent system. AVc have strengthened the general 
government. A\'c have given the general Legislatm-e all the 
great sul)jects of legislation. We have conferred upon them, not 
only specitically and in detail all the powers incident upon sov- 
ereignty, but we have expressly declared that all subjects of gen- 
eral interest, not distinctly and exclusively conferred upon the 
local governments and local Legislatures, shall be conferred upon 
the general government and Legislature." Notwithstanding- 
this precaution, discussion soon arose as to the relative powers 
of the local and general governments and Legislatures, friends 
of the former pretending to see in the acts of the latter a dis- 
position to ignore the rights of the provinces. At one time 
Mr. Dunkin, a prominent member of the Quebec government, 
announced in his place iu the Legislature in 18G7, that "none 
of the functions of the province have a municipal character. 
They are not derived from the Dominion ; • they are not depend- 
ent on the Dominion ; their authority is not subordinate to the 
Dominion. It has tar more the character of coordination." But 
later on in the discussion Mr. Dunkin moditied his views, and 
in another speech he affirmed that " he never entertained a 
thought of claiming any undue importance or jurisdiction for 
the local o-overnments. The local o-overnments had suI)ordi- 
nate functions to the general government ; but no one could 
deny that they had some coordinate powers, and that was all 
he claimed." 

3. But trouble of a more serious character soon arose in 
another quarter. The people of Nova Scotia, a majority of 
whom from the 1)eginning opposed some of the provisions of 
the union act, and protested in various forms, now denied the 
right of the local Parliament to sanction the annulling of their 
old constitution, holding the doctrine of Locke, that " the Legis- 
lature can have no powder to transfer their authority of making 
laws, or to place it in other hands." This opinion found an 
able advocate in the Hon. Joseph Howe, and completely con- 
trolled the elections in Nova Scotia for some time after the con- 
federation. But an appeal to England was without effect, and, 
being unable to defeat confederation, Mr. Howe obtained such 
an extent of fiscal and other concessions for Nova Scotia as to 
warrant, in his own judgment, his acceptance of a place in the 
Dominion Cabinet. He says, "I did not take oliice, though 
it had been offered to me for eighteen months, till my country's 
fair claim to readjustment of the scheme was admitted, and \m- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 557 

til Gladstone's caliinet, with John Bright in it, counselled peace 
and refused repeal." 

4. In 18()8 Newfoundland signified her desire to become a 
member of the Dominion ; but, up to the present, the terms 
satisfactory to her government and Legislature have not been 
agreed upon. British Columbia signified her willingness to join 
the union immediately upon the Hudson Bay Territory being 
purchased by the Dominion government. The Dominion Par- 
liament of 1867 passed resolutions authorizing the acquisition 
of this territory, and two members of the general government 
— Cartier and McDougall — were despatched to England to 
promote the necessary negotiations. In 18(58 the most im- 
portant measure of legislation was that authorizing the Inter- 
colonial Eailway, and the commencement of the great work. 
This road was the kej'-stone to confederation. Without it, of 
course, there could be no union, and without the union the 
British government would not guarantee the necessary three 
million pounds. The Imperial Act, authorizing this loan, pro- 
vided that the " commissioners of her majesty's treasury shall 
not give any guaranty under this act unless and until an act of 
the Parliament of Canada has been passed, within two years 
after the union of Canada under the British North American 
xict of 1867, providing to the satisfaction of one of her majesty's 
principal secretaries of state, as follows : " 1st, for the con- 
struction of the railway ; 2d, for the use of the railway at all 
times for her majesty's military and other service." " Nor unless 
and until the line in which the railway is to be constructed is 
approved by one of her majesty's principal secretaries of state." 
The olijcct of this clause was to compel the Dominion govern- 
ment to adopt a line already surveyed by Major Kobinson, 
running along the gulf shore as far north as possible from the 
American frontier. This line was adopted, and, of course, 
secured the approliation of the secretary of state, and the road 
has been built, connecting Halifax and Quebec. 

5. In 1869 negotiations between the Hudson Bay Company 
and the Dominion had so far succeeded that the former asrreed 
to surrender all its rights for the sum of one million two hun- 
dred thousand dollars ; and it was arranged that this amount 
should be paid, and a legal transfer of the territory made on 
the 1st day of December, 1869. For some reasons the au- 
thorities of the Dominion decided that the lieutenant-governor 
of the new territory should be at the seat of his future govern- 
ment in advance of the date fixed upon for the transfer, and 



558 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

accordingly the Hon. William McDongall, C.B., the gentleman 
so appointed, took his departure from the capital of the Do- 
minion early in November, accompanied by officials selected to 
aid him in the government. These persons were selected from 
Ontario and Quebec, and, like the governor, knew comparatively 
nothing of the country which they were to govern. The gov- 
ernor and his subordinates were met by a body of armed men, 
who to(;k possession of a fort which he had entered, and obliged 
him to fall back into United States territory. These insurgents 
next seized Fort Garry, and finally established a provisional 
government, and Mr. McDougall was obliged to return to 
Ottawa ; but these troubles were removed early in 1870 by 
prudent measures on the part of the Dominion government. 
l)(degatcs were received at Ottawa, and on the 3d of jMay the 
governor-general. Sir John Young, M^as enabled to telegraph 
the imperial authorities that negotiations with them closed satis- 
factorily. On the 12th of the same month permanent effect 
was given to the arrangements thus arrived at by an act of the 
Dominion Parliament, which created out of "Rupert's Land, in 
the North-west Territory, a new province, containing eleven 
thousand square miles, named Manitoba, to be represented in 
the Senate of Canada, until its population shall have increased, 
by two meml)ers, and in the House of Commons by four members. 
It was also provided that there should 1)e a local Legislature, to 
consist of a lieutenant-governor and two houses, styled respect- 
ively the Legislative Council and the Legislative Assembly, the 
fonncr to consist of seven members, to be appointed by the 
lieutenant-governor in the queen's name, the latter of twenty- 
four, elected every four years ; each male person in the province 
being entitled to vote, subject only to the condition of being 
twenty-one years of age, a subject of her majesty by birth or 
naturalization, and a hoiui fide householder. 

6. The financial conditions upon which the new province 
was admitted into the union were fair and equitalde. Allow- 
ance was made for the fact that Manitolja become liable for the 
general debt, and ample provision was guaranteed for the sup- 
port of the government and Legislature of the provinces. 
The customs duties chargeable in llupert's Land, previous to 
INIauitoba being erected, were to continue without increase for 
three years, the proceeds to form [)art of the General Consoli- 
dated Revenue Fund of Canada. The chief cause of the 
insurrectionary movement which greeted Hon. Mr. McDougall 
was an apprehension on the part of the half-breeds of the ter- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 559 

ritory, that not only would future grants of land be made with a 
view to their injury as a people, Init that existing rights would 
not be sufficiently respected. Much care was therefore shown 
in the Dominion law to remove all ground for such alarm. It 
was expressly jn-ovided that one hundred thousand acres of 
land should be divided among the children of the half-breeds 
residing in the province at the time of the transfer to Canada, 
on such conditions as to settlement, and otherwise, as the gov- 
ernor-general, in council, may from time to time determine. 
The law also provided for the security, in the possession of 
their lands, of settlers there in the territory. Soon after these 
transactions the newly-appointed lieutenant-governor of Mani- 
toI)a, the Hon. A. G. Archibald, proceeded to Fort Garry, 
where he engaged himself, with good success, in inaugurating 
the ncAV and iuiproved plan of government. 

7. In 1870 the able finance minister, Sir Francis Hineks, 
introduced a new l)anking law, which, while it worked radical 
changes in the system, met the approval of the princi[)al bank- 
ers and the public at large. Under the law no bank could be 
started without a paid-up capital of two hundred thousand 
dollars. In the same year the question of the adjustment or 
division of the assets of the provinces of Ontario and Quebec 
caused consideral)le agitation. The obituary list of the year 
contained some notable names. Archbishop liaillangcon, of 
Quebec, a prelate of saintly character, passed to his rest. Mr. 
A. S. Ritchie and Mr. Edward Hartley, men of science, one in 
connection with the Natural History Society, the other with 
the Geographical Survey of Canada, also ceased their labors. 
And Chancellor Blake, of Ontario, whose great services as a 
statesman and judge extended over a quarter of a century, suc- 
cumbed to a disease which had its origin iu increasing profes- 
sional toil. 

8. But the event which awakened most interest in Canada, 
throughout 1870-71, was the admission of British Colum])ia, — 
a colony of the Pacific coast, of small })opulation, but of large 
resources, especially in fisheries and minerals, and so situated 
as to be adapted to command not only the trade of the western 
side of the continent, and the islands of the Pacific, but also 
that of the trans-Pacific countries. Previous to its administra- 
tion to the Canadian union its isolated position rendered 
development to any large extent scarcely possible. For com- 
munication Avith England a sea voyage of one hundred and 
fifty days was necessary. The leading condition upon which 



560 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



this colony entered the Dominion was an agreement on the 
part of the Dominion government to construct a raih-oad from 
Ontario to the Pacific coast, thereby affording British Cohmi- 
bia means of active communication Avith Canada, and witli the 
world at large. It was at that time computed that this railroad 
would be at least two thousand five hundred miles long, ex- 
tending from Lake Nipissing, north of Lake Superior, and two 
hundred miles from Toronto, to Victoria, the capital of British 
Columbia ; and it was stipulated that it should be built in ten 
years, means to be provided by grants of land, of twent}- miles' 
extent, on each side of the road, and by such subsidy as to the 

Parliament of the Dominion 
might seem lit. The estimated 
cost of the road was one hun- 
dred million dollars. Hence 
it will be seen that the Do- 
minion was already engaged 
in pul)lic works of a masterly 
character, and was fast rising 
into national mawniticence and 
importance, even in 1870. 
Apart from this Pacific Rail- 
way scheme, the raihva}^s of 
the Domini(m were increasins: 
in numbers and value. Those 
then in operation exceeded 
three thousand miles in length, 
and there was in process of 
construction about one thou- 
sand miles more, and charters 
had been granted for an additional eight hundred miles. The 
principal line, — then not completed, — the Intercolonial, was 
rapidly advancing, under a force of one hundred and thirt}'- 
threc thousand six hundred and ninety-four men, eleven thou- 
sand nine hundred and sixty boys, twenty-nine thousand four 
hundred and twenty-six horses, and three hundred and twenty- 
four oxen. 

9. The 3d of May, 1872, will long be rememl^ered in 
Canada as that upon which Sir John A. Macdonald, as first 
minister of the Dominion, introduced a bill to give efiect to 
those clauses of the Treaty of Washington, negotiated between 
the United States and Great Britain in 1871, which affected the 
Dominion interests. Sir John's position, as well as that of his 




ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



561 



colleagues, was much exposed to attack in this all-important 
affair. The act of ceding fishery rights of almost incalculable 
value, together with the sovereignty of the St. Lawrence, 
without reciprocity of trade l)eing secured, or even an acknowl- 
edgement by the United States commissioners of the wrong 
done by the Fenian invasion, was very distasteful throughout 
every province of the Dominion ; so much so that, although Sir 
John had, as joint-high commissioner, been a party to the ses- 
sion, he ultimately united with his colleagues in council, at 
Ottawa, in an earnest protest against a policy at once so hurt- 
ful to the best interests of Canada. However, the timely 
guaranty, by the imperial government, of a Pacific Railway 
loan of two million five hundred thousand pounds sterling, 
equal to about twelve million 
dollars, had a pacific efiect. 
So great was the personal in- 
fluence of Sir John that he 
managed to carry the treaty 
resolutions in Parliament b}^ a 
majority of sixty-six in an 
Assembly of one hundred and 
seventy-six members. The 
debate was marked by great 
ability. The speech of Sir 
John A. Macdonald has been 
pronounced an effort "of incom- 
parable skill ; that of Hon. Ed. 
Blake, in opposition, was re- 
markable for cleverness and 
feelino;. In June the fifth and 
last session of the first Do- 
minion Parliament was brought 

to a close, and consequently general elections soon afterwards 
followed. The many contests throughout the several provinces 
partook of the character of a A'ital struggle. The aggregate 
vote was somewhat in favor of the ministry, l)ut they had a 
minority in the Province of Ontario. In closing Parliament, 
the governor-general, Lord Lisgar, bade the country farewell. 
On the 22d of the same month, after attending a banquet at 
Montreal, in his honor, he sailed for England, bearing with him 
the reputation of a just and judicious ruler, and a man of 
blameless private life. Three days later, his successor, the 
Earl of Duiferin, also a peer of the realm, arrived at Quebec. 




562 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



10. But the year 1873, before its close, witnessed the most 
exciting political crisis known in the Dominion of Canada, which 
resulted in the downfall of the ministry of Sir John A. Mac- 
donald, and the formation of a new ministry, under the leader 
of the opposition, Hon. Alex. Mackenzie. The causes which 

led to this result grew out of 
the charges made in the early 
part of the year against the 
Macdonald cabinet by Mr. 
Huntington, wlio declared that 
in the disposition of the Cana- 
dian Pacilic Kailway contract 
and franchises, the government 
had been actuated by unpa- 
triotic and corrupt motives. It 
was alleged that the ministry 
had favored the Americans in 
this railway ])usincss, for which 
favors money had been re- 
ceived. It will be remembered 
that the conditions upon which 
British Columbia came into the 
Dominion in 1871 included an 
agreement on the part of the 
Dominion government to complete the Canadian Pacilic Hail- 
road by the year 1881. In 1873 the company, in consequence 
of financial difucultios, were obliged to surrender their charter 
to the government. After the charges above alhided to had 
been made, a royal commission was appointed to take evidence 
and report upon what had now become known as the " Pacific 
Eailway Scandal." On the 22d of October the second session 
of the second Parliament was opened at Ottawa, and in a speech 
from the throne Lord Duficrin announced the collapse of the 
Pacilic Railway Company. Then followed that memorable 
battle on the floor of the Dominion Commons, in which Sir John 
A. Macdonald took the leading part in defence of the govern- 
ment ; but on the 7th of November it was all over, and a new 
cabinet, under the able leadership of Hon. Alex. Mackenzie, 
was announced. Sir John had fallen. 

11. Prince Edward Island, as already observed, came into 
the union in this year, with a population of over one hundred 
thousand. For some time the inhabitants of the island had 
been unwilling to join the confederation ; but serious financial 




ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



563 



difficulties arose, and the public mind turned towards Ottawa 
for relief, and relief was found there. In addition to the benefits 
vouchsafed to the island on entering the Domhiion it was pro- 
vided that the railroad of two hundred miles in length, which 
the local government had undertaken to construct, at a cost of 
three million five hundred thousand dolhirs, should become the 
property of the Dominion ; and further advantage was conferred 
in the form of aid to steamboat and telegraphic communication 
with the main land. 

12. The lion. Alexander Mackenzie, in taking the reins of 
government, thus addressed his constituents in reference to the 
great railway difficulty : " We must meet the difficulty imposed 
on Canada by the reckless arrangements of the late government 
with reference to the Pacilic 
Railway under which they 
pledged the honor and re- 
sources of this country to the 
commencement of that o-jo-antic 
work, in July, 1873, and to its 
completion by July, 1881. 
That compact has already been 
broken. Over a million has 
now been spent in surveys, but 
no part of the line has yet been 
located, and the bargain is, as 
we always said it was, incapable 
of literal fuliilraent. AVith a 
view to obtain a speed;f meaus 
of communication across the 
continent, and to facilitate the 
construction of the railway it- 
self, it will be our policy to 

utilize the enormous stretches of magnificent water communica- 
tion which lie between a point not far from the Rocky jMountains 
and Fort Garr}', and between Lake Superior and French river 
on the Georgian Bay, thus avoiding, for the present, the con- 
struction of alJout one thousand three hundred miles of railway, 
estimated to cost from sixty million to eighty million dollars." 
The new ministry started out with the cry of retrenchment, and 
well have they, with one or two important exceptions, carried 
out the policy. The ministry of j\Ir. Mackenzie has thus far 
wisely administered the government. 




564 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



CHAPTER XLin. 



THE DOMINION OF CAl>f ADA — (continued). 

CANADA AT THE "CENTENNIAL" — THE HALIFAX FISHERY COMMISSION THE 

AWARD — -ST. JOHN FIRE, ETC. 

1. The administration of Lord DufFerin was made brilliant 
by the splendid display of Canadian exhibits at the Philadelphia 
Centennial Exposition in 187 G, and through this method the 
Dominion of Canada was advantageously presented, through the 
achievements of her industries, to the nations of the world. 
Canada made a very large and comprehensive exhibit. Among 
the prominent classes of products shown were cotton and woollen 
cloths, hosiery, hardware, earthenware, marbles, and made-up 
garments. The models of ships and specimens of ores, petro- 
leum, plumbago, and building- 
stones, were also exhibited. 
The display of firs was promi- 
nent and fine ; the exhibit of 
agricultural products and ma- 
chinery, snow-plows, and other 
novelties. 

2. The administration of 
Lord Dufferin is also distin- 
guished by the decision of the 
Halifax Fishery Commission , by 
which the sum of five million five 
hundred thousand dollars, in 
gold, was awarded to the gov- 
ernment of the queen. Mr. 
C. H. Mackintosh, the able 
editor of the " Canadian Par- 
liamentary Companion," fitly 
remarks that " when the Halifax Fishery Commission concluded 
its labors and rendered its award, on the 23d Nov., 1877, one 
of the great modern international treaties became historical. 
The Treaty of AYashington, of 187 1 , dealt with interests far greater 
and in a manner far more conformable to the higher principles of 




J 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



565 



the law of nations than its almost trivial discussion in the press 
of England and Canada would lead an impartial inquirer to sup- 
pose. Now that it is a portion of a chapter of history, the 
treaty will become at once more interesting and important." 
By no means the least important " question," the settlement of 
which was provided for in the Treaty of Washington, was the 
vexed question of the fisheries. No great dispute, involving 
territorial and commercial questions of the first importance, had 
ever been so little understood by the general public. It is 
equally safe to say that with no great public question were 
public men in Canada less acquainted. And yet the official 
correspondence was of enormous bulk and of constant occur- 
rence ; the blue books contained many summaries of the merits 
of the dispute ; and for several years one of the most important 
departments of the public service (the Marine and Fisheries) 
had been almost fully occupied with the business of discussing, 
formulating, and protecting by armed force the claims of 
Canada over the fisheries. Perhaps no other official in the 
public service has had a longer 
and more intimate acquaint- 
ance with this question than 
Commissioner Whitcher, and 
certainly none has taken a 
more earnest and patriotic in- 
terest in it on behalf of Can- 
ada. The principal events 
connected with it have trans- 
pired during the ministry of 
the Hon. P. Mitchell and the 
Hon. A. J. Smith, and of 
course their official ability and 
power have given force and 
effect to the policy adopted 
and to all measures carried 
out in this behalf. Till the 
completion of the rebellion 
of the colonies by the recog- 
nition of their independence, there was of course no " question " 
at all with regard to the fisheries. British subjects on both sides 
of the St. Lawrence, and all over the northern continent, had 
perfect freedom of the fishing-grounds. The New England fish- 
ermen were the most active in following the avocation of lishermen, 
and they had embarked much capital and engaged many ships 




566 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

and men in the business. When they had renounced their 
allciriance to the British crown, of course they forfeited their 
rights to share in the profits of the British fisheries. This they 
could not be got to understand, till it was brought home to 
them by armed vessels and shots across their bows, by confis- 
cation and condemnation in the courts. This disagreeable 
state of things preceded the treaty of 1783, in which it was 
provided (Art. III.), — 

It is agreed that the people of the United States shall continue to enjoy 
unmolested the right to take fish of every kind on the Grand Bank, and on 
all the other banks of Newfoundland ; also on the Gulf of St. Lawrence ; 
and at all other places in the sea, where the inhabitants of both countries 
used at any time heretofore to fish. And also that the inhabitants of the 
United States shall have liberty to take fish of every kind on such ports of 
the coast of Newfoundland as British fishermen shall use (but not to dry 
or cure the same on tliat island), and also on the coasts, bays and creeks, 
of all other of His Britannic Majesty's Dominions in America; and that the 
American fishermen shall have liberty to dry and cure fish in any of the un- 
settled bays, harbors, and creeks of Nova Scotia, Magdalen Islands and 
Labrador, so long as the same shall remain unsettled, but so soon as the 
same or either of them shall be settled, it shall not be lawful for the said 
fishermen to dry or cure fish at such settlement, without a j^revious agree- 
ment for that purpose with the inhabitants, jjroprietors or possessors of the 
ground. 

32. The language of the treaty was guarded.^ It gave a 
" riofht " to fish on the banks and in the sea. It conceded a 
" liberty " to fish on the shores and in the territorial waters. 
The difierence between these two concessions will plainly be 
seen when we come to consider the next point in dispute. 
This arose out of the war of 1812. AVhen this war had ended, 
the British and colonial authorities claimed that the war had 
put an end to the "liberty" given to the American fishermen 
in the treaty of 1783. The Treaty of Peace (1814) contained 
no mention of the fishery question. The British and colonial 
authorities proceeded to act on this view, that the " liberty " of 
1783 had been abrogated by the war of 1812. The Americans 
claimed that the " liberty " thus conceded was as much an irre- 
movable gift as the concession or recognition of independence, 
and was not therefore abrogated by war. But the British view 
was maintained with strictness. It is supported by the strongest 
legal authority (see Wheaton, page 463; Kent, vol. 1, page 
178 ; Upton's "Maritime Warfare," page IG ; Woolsey's "Inter- 
national Law," page 257, aiul other authorities to which these 

' Mackintosh's Canadian Parliamentary Companion. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 567 

refer). Things could not remain • long in this condition. 
Twenty United Slates vessels had been seized for trespassing 
on the territorial waters. And in 1818 a convention was held, 
at which the following article was si<>:ned : — 

Article I. — Whereas differences have arisen respecting the liberty 
claimed by the United States for the inhabitants thereof to take, dry, and 
cure fish on certain coasts, bays, harbors and creeks of His Britannic 
Majesty's Dominions in x\merica ; it is agreed between the high contracting 
parties that the inhabitants of the said united States shall have forever in 
common with the snbjects of His Britannic Majesty, the liberty to take fish 
of every kind on that j^art of the southern coast of Ivewfoundland which 
extends from Cape Bay to the Bameau Lslands, on the w estern and nortliern 
coast of iNcwfoundland, from the said Cape Bay to tlie Tuirpon Islands, on 
the sliores of the Ixiagwalen Ishmds, and also on the coasts, bays, harbors, and 
creeks from Mount Jol}-, on the southern coast ot Labrador, to and through 
the Straits of Belleisle ; and thence northwardly indefinitely along the 
coast, without i^rejudice, however, to any of the exclusive rights of the 
Hudson Bay Company ; and tliat the American fisliermen shall also have 
liberty forever to dry and cure fish in any of the unsettled bays, harbors, 
and creeks of the southern part of the coast of Newfoundland here above- 
described, and of the coast of Labrador; but so soon as the same or any 
portion thereof shall be settled it sliall not be lawful for the said fisliermen 
to dry or cure fish at sucli portions so settled without previous agreement 
for such purjjoses with the inhabitants, proprietors or possessors of the 
ground. And the United States liereby kenounce fokevek any liberty 
heretofore enjoyed or claimed by the inhabitants thereof, to take, dry, or 
cure fish on or witliin three marine miles of any of the coasts, bays, creeks 
or harbors of His Britannic Majesty's Dominions in America, not kicluded 
in the above-mentioned limits ; provided, however, tliat the American fisher- 
men sliall be admitted to enter such bays or liarbors for the purpose of 
shelter and of repairing damages tlierein, of purchasing wood and of obtain- 
ing water, and for no other purpose whatever ; but they shall be under such 
restrictions as may be necessary to prevent their taking, drying, or curing 
fish therein, or in any other manner whatever abusing the privileges hereby 
reserved to them. 

4. The language of this treaty, specific as it was, did not 
settle the question. The Americans proceeded to interpret it 
their own way. 1st. Thus having specially renoimced ' the 
liberty of taking or curing tish within three miles of the British 
coasts, baj^s, creeks, or harbors, they proceeded to interpret 
that to mean three miles from the shore line throughout ail 
its sinuosities, and not as, according to the well-detined law 
of nations, three miles from a line drawn from headland to 
headland. The dispute over this point is called the " Head- 
land Question." The merits of it need not be set down here. 
The case is fully set out in the. Annual Eeport of the De- 
partment of Marine and Fisheries, 1871 ; in a "Heport on the 
Fishery Articles of Treaties between Great Britain and the 



568 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



United States of America," by Mr. W. F. Whitcher, Commis- 
sioner of Fisheries, Ottawa; and in the elaborate speech of the 
Hon. Peter Mitchell, in the House of Commons, in the session of 
1875. 

5. 2d.^ Having renounced the liberty of entering such bays 
or harbors, except for the purpose of shelter and of repairing 
damages, of purchasing wood and of obtaining water, " and for 

no other purpose Avhatever," 
the Americans proceeded to 
enter such bays and harbors for 
such purposes as were never 
contemplated ; and between 
1818 and 1854 their vessels 
were seized : 1st, for fishing 
within the prescribed limits ; 
2d, for anchoring Avithin the 
limits, having on board suffi- 
cient supplies of wood and 
water ; 3d, for packing and 
cleaning fish within the limits : 
4tli, for purchasing bait and pre- 
paring to fish within the limits ; 
5th, for selling "goods" and 
purchasing supplies ; 6th, for 
landing and transshipping car- 
goes. All these acts were pro- 
nounced illegal by our own courts, and were said in the " Amer- 
ican Law Review" to be "plainly unlawful." The Treaty of 
Reciprocity, in 1854, put an end temporarily to all these dis- 
putes. But at the close of the treaty, in 186G, they of course 
were reopened. On the 20th of February, 18G6, the governor- 
general formally announced to the Americans that their privi- 
leges had ceased. The Americans protested, of course, and, 
equally, of course, continued to poach on our waters. Yield- 
ing to the wishes of the imperial government, the minister of 
marine and fisheries (Hon. Peter Mitchell) tried from 18G6 to 
1809 a system of licenses. In 1866 there were four hundred 
and fifty-four licenses issued. In 1869 only twenty-five were 
taken out. This was clearly not a satisfactory arrangement ; 
and in 1870 the minister of marine and fisheries organized a 
police for the protection of the fisheries. Its operations were 




1 Mackintosh's Caaadian Parliamentary Companion. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



569 



very much complicated by the existing dispute between Great 
Britain and the United States concerning the headland question. 
It was extremely difficult to enforce exclusion from undefined 
limits. Canada, therefore, urged a settlement of the disputed 
interpretation of the treaty of 1818 in respect of exclusive bays. 
In 1866 the American minister at London had suggested a 
mixed commission, to settle the controversy. Canada took up 
this suggestion, and the Hon. Mr. Cameron was sent as a dele- 
gate to England to impress on the British Government the ne- 
cessity of removing this cause of difficult}^, and to adopt more 
efiectual measures ; also to secure more active imperial cooper- 
ation. Mr. Cameron's mission resulted in the opening nego- 
tiations for an international commission. These negotiations 
resulted, at the suggestion of the United States, in a joint high 
commission, to include the Alabama claims and the San Juan 
boundary question ; the upshot of which was the Washington 
Treaty of 1871. That treaty contained, among others, the fol- 
lowing provisions : — 

Article XXII. — Inasmuch as it is asserted by the Government of Her 
Britannic Majestj-, that the privileges accorded to the citizens of the United 
States inider Article XVIII. of this treaty are of greater value than those 
accorded by Articles XIX. and XXI. of this treaty to the subjects of Her 
Britannic Majesty, and this assertion 
is not admitted by the Government of 
the United States, it is further agreed 
that commissioners shall be ap- 
pointed to determine, having re- 
gai-d to the privileges accorded by 
the United States to the subjects of 
her Britannic Majesty, as stated in 
Articles XIX. and XXI. of this 
treaty, the amount of any compen- 
sation which, in their opinion, ought 
to be paid by the Government of the 
United States to the Government of 
Her Britannic JNIajesty, in return for 
the privileges accorded to the citi- 
zens of the United States under 
Article XVIH. of this treaty ; and 
that any sum of money which the 
said commissioners may so award 
shall be paid by the United States 
Government, in a gross sum, within 
twelve months alter such award 
shall have been given. 

Article XXII. — The commis- 
sioners referred to in the preceding ai-ticles shall be appointed in the fol- 
lowing manner, that is to say : One commissioner shall be named by her 
Britannic Majesty, one by the President of the United States, and a third 




570 



HISTOEY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



by Her Britannic Majesty and the President of the United States con- 
jointly ; and in case the third commissioner shall not have l)een so named 
within a period of three months from the date when this article shall take 
eifect, then the third commissioner shall be named by the representative at 
London of His Majesty the Emjjeror of Austria and King of Hungary. In 
case of the death, absence, or incapacity of any commissioner, or in the 
event of any commissioner omitting or ceasing to act, tlie vacancy shall be 
filled in the manner hereinbefore provided for making the original appoint- 
ment, the ])eriod of three months in the case of such substitution being 
calculated from tl>e date of the happening of the vacancy. 

The commissioners so named shall meet in the city of Halifax, in the 
Province of Nova Scotia, at the earliest convenient period after they have 
been respectively named, and shall, before jjroceeding to any business, 
make, and subscribe a solemn declaration that they will impartially and 
carefully examine and decide the matters referred to them to the best of 
their judgment, and according to justice and equity; and such declaration 
shall be entered in the record of their proceedings. 

Each of the high contracting parties shall also name one person to at- 
tend the commission as its agent, to represent it generally in all matters 
connected with the commission. 



G. Owing to various causes, which need not be referred to 
here, the commission thus provided for did not meet till June, 

1877. It consisted of the fol- 
lowing persons : For Great 
Britain : — Sir Alexander T. 
Gait, K.C.M.G., Commission- 
er ; Francis Flare Lord, Esq., 
Agent ; H. G. Bergne, Esq., 
Assistant. For the United 
States: — Hon. Ensign H. 
Kellogg, Commissioner ; Hon. 
D. Foster, Agent. Neutral 
Commissioner : — His Excel- 
lency Maurice Del fosse, Bel- 
oian Minister to Washino-ton. 
Canadian Counsel : — Joseph 
Doutrc, Esq. , Q.C. , Montreal ; 
S. R. Thompson, Esq., Q.C, 
St. John ; R. L. "Wcatherbee, 
Esq., Halifax; L. H. Davies, 
Esq., M.P.P., Charlottetown. The proceedings were opened 
at Halifax in June, 1877 ; but were kept as private as possible. 
The British case was first presented. Then the American 
ajiiswer was handed in after a due delay, accompanied by -a 
brief on the headland question. Then the British counter- 
reply was presented, also accompanied by a brief in answer. 




ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 571 

maintaining the British and Canadian view of the headland 
question. These closed the documentary position of the pro- 
ceedings. For months after, oral evidence was taken from 
a great number of witnesses, and documentary testimony 
filed on both sides. Every tacility was afforded the Ameri- 
cans. The days when every foreigner was hostis, an enemy, 
have gone away forever, and so official documents were 
open to Americans, and Canadians freely testified orally and 
in writing on their behalf; they had the advice of Canadian 
counsel, the use of the provincial library at Halifax, the priv- 
ilege of calling any witnesses they pleased, and every possible 
aid they could have wished for in their labors. Their personal 
and professional associations with the other side were of the 
most hospitabfe kind, and the social attentions they enjoyed 
were spontaneous and acceptable. No public or private influ- 
ence and not a tinge of prejudice existed anywhere to interfere 
with their perfect freedom. This unstinted hospitahty has had 
its good effects already, and will, perhaps, have more enduring 
effects in due time. The British case, drafted by Mr. Wliit- 
cher and JMr. Ford, set out, with all necessary fulness of detail, 
ail the particulars of the claims for compensation ; the inuiiense 
value to the Americans of the privileges of fishing in the terri- 
torial waters of Canada ; the value of the privileges of purchas- 
ing bait, landing and transshipping cargoes, hiring men, buying 
supplies and so on, which were supposed to be incidental and 
even essential to the full enjoyment of the treaty; the great 
efforts Canada had made to improve the river fisheries, and 
which added very greatly to the value of the shore fisheries ; 
the small value of the American fisheries to the Canadian tish- 
ermen ; the limited benefit of the fine market for fij^h in the 
United States, and which resulted in giving the Americans 
cheaper fish, and was of no veiy essential or great bcnctit to the 
Canadian producer ; and so on through all the Canadian courts 
of the claim for compensation. 

7. The American answer^ was a formidal)le document and 
very able. It claimed that nothing availed for compensation to 
Great Britain {i.e., Canada) except the concessions made under 
Article XVIII of the Treaty ; and these were : 1. The privileges 
of the shore fisheries ; and, 2. The extended privileges of land- 
ing to dry and cure fish. It also claimed that the commission 
had no power to decide questions of international law. It set 

i Mackintosh's Parliamentary Companion. 



572 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



out also the great extent of the privileges practically enjoyed 
by the American fishermen previous to the treaty ; the evident 
desire of the British government, as evinced by well-known 
despatches and telegrams, to prevent a too rigid enforcement 
of abstract claims on the part of Canada ; and also that the 
free market for fish granted in the United States was a set-oflf 
for any compensation that might be demanded. It also set 
forth that, as no right of traffic was granted hy the treaty, no 
compensation, therefore, could be demanded ; and that the laws 
of the Dominion and the provinces prohibiting such trafiic were 
still unrepealed. These statements were ably met in the Brit- 
ish reply. Two of the points thus raised by the American 
counsel have been sustained, one by a unanimous decision of 
the commissioners, the other by no decision at all being given 
or required. The right to claim compensation for traffic was 
decided agaiuvst by the commission as not being granted by 
the treaty. The headland question was ignored on the ground 
set forth by the American counsel, namely, that the commis- 
sioners could not decide questions of international law, and 
"must approach the settlement of the question on a comprehen- 



sive basis." Thus, Canada has left for future assertion and 

settlement two of her most 
valuable claims : (1) the right 
to regulate the traffic of Amer- 
ican fishermen in bait and 
supplies ; and (2) the right to 
prohibit, at the expiration of 
the treaty, all fishing within 
the headland line. It is un- 
derstood that Great Britain 
will support both of these 
claims to the fullest extent 
at the proper time. Both of 
these questions being ruled 
out, the claim for comj^ensa- 
tion became practically nar- 
rowed down to the points set 
forth as above in the Ameri- 
can answer ; and, whereas, 
fourteen million eight hun- 
dred and eighty thousand dollars might have been no exagger- 
ated demand for the fuller claims, five million five hundred 
thousand dollars was generally accepted as a fair estimate for 




ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 573 

the narrower basis on which the commissioners founded their 
decision. The text of the award, as pubhshed in the papers, 
is as follows : — 

The undersigned, commissioners appointed under Articles XXII. and 
XXIII. of the Treaty of Washington, of tiie 18th of May, 1871,— 

Do Determine, having i-egard to the privileges accorded by the United 
States to the subjects of Her Britannic Majesty, as stated in Articles XIX. 
and XXI. of said treaty, the amount of any compensation which in their 
opinion ought to be paid by the government of the United States to the 
government of Her Britannic Majesty in return for the privileges accorded 
to the citizens of the United States under Article XVIII. of the said treaty, 
having carefully and impartially examined the matters referred to them, 
according to justice and equity, in conformity with the solemn declaration 
made and subscribed by them on the 15th day of June, one thousand eight 
hundred and seventy-seven, do award the sum of five millions five hun- 
dred thousand dollars in gold, to be paid by the government of the United 
States to the government of Her Britannic Majesty, in accordance with the 
provisions of the said Treaty. 

Signed at Halifax this 23d day of November, one thousand eight hun- 
dred and seventy-seven. 

MAURICE DELFOSSE. 
A. T. GALT. 

8. The dissent of Senator Kellogg, on behalf of the United 
States, was expressed as follows : — ' 

The United States commissioner is of opinion that the advantages 
accruing to Great Britain under the Treaty of Washington are greater than 
the advantages conferred upon the United States by said treaty, and he 
cannot, therefore, concur in the conclusions announced by his colleagues ; 
and the American commissioner deems it his duty to state further that it is 
questionable whether it is competent for the the board to make an award 
under the treaty, except with unanimous consent of its members. 

[Signed], E. H. KELLOGG. 

9. And Hon. Dwight Foster, agent of the United States, 
made the following statement : — 

I have no instructions from the government of the United States as to 
the course to be pursued in the contingency of such a result as has just 
been announced, but if I were to accept in silence the paper signed by two 
commissioners it might be claimed hereafter that as agent of the United 
States I have acquiesced in treating it as a valid award. Against such an 
inference it seems my duty to guard. I therefore make this statement, 
which I desire to have placed upon record. 

This completes the history of this case so far as it has gone at 
the time of sending this volume to press. The general opinion of 
the United States, with some important exceptions, is favorable 



574 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

to the payment of the claim, and against the propriety of taking 
advantage of any technicahty in regard to the unanimity of the 
decision. The Englisli press has talven the view that the United 
{States will honorably satisfy the award. The Canadian press 
has taken the same position. And the merely ^ro/brma temper 
of the protests of the United States commissioner and agent 
leads to the belief that no serious eflbrt will be made to resist 
the decision of the majority. But, in any case, the commission 
has had most valuable results. It has brought together in one 
mass of available information all that has been or can be said 
on this great international subject. It has taught the public 
of Canada the value of the tisheries. It has taught the English 
government and people the same lesson. It has justified all 
the efforts that were made from 1866 to 1870 to protect the 
fishery grounds from the encroachments of the United States 
fishermen. And it leaves Canada in a tenfold stronger and 
more tenable position in any future negotiations or disputes 
regarding the subjects discussed and decided in the commission. 
The most peculiar feature is the evidence afforded to Great 
Britain that Canada can uphold her interests with moderation 
and success, to the common benefit of imperial and colonial 
diplomacy. It may also be seen by the United States that, 
notwithstanding a prevalent belief much commented upon in 
these proceedings, Great Britain does value Canadian fishery 
rights, and is resolved to maintain them. Sir Alexander Gait 
bears testimony to the " fidelity and ability " of the Canadians 
connected with this important inquiry. Mr. A. J. Smith, the 
minister of marine and fisheries, was present throughout in an 
advisory capacity, and manifested great interest in the progress 
of the suit. His assistance and advice are said to have been 
most valuable. 

10. Lord Dufferin has now served out his allotted term of 
five years, with great acceptance to both the people and gov- 
ernment of the Dominion, and the imperial authorities. His 
administration was clouded for a moment by the political crisis 
in which the great conservative leader. Sir John A. Macdonald, 
and his ministry were overthrown ; but for a moment only, for 
the despatches from the colonial secretary's oflice in London, 
complimenting the earl on his able management of the turbulent 
elements, were not more complimentary than was the every- 
where expressed satisfaction of the people of the Dominion, of 
all political parties. The Earl of Dutferin is a nobleman in 
more than one sense. He has a noble rank, — a peer of the 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



575 




realm, — but his nobility of head and heart exceeds any 
titles which royalty can bestow. He is a scholar of no 
ordinary ability, an author of some fame, and a man of unim- 
peacha1)le private character. 
He will return to her whom 
he has so nobly represented 
(the queen), and to his coun- 
try (Ireland), with the most 
profound regard of every Ca- 
nadian. Ho has won the ad- 
miration and respect of the 
American people, and will 
long be remembered through- 
out the continent of North 
America as the most accept- 
able governor-general ever 
sent to guide the ati'airs of the 
British American provinces. 
His noble wife, the Countess 
of Dufferin, has exalted the 
vice-regal court of the Do- 
minion l)y her l)eauty, her 
brilliancy, and her deeds of public and private charity. 

12. The destruction of a large portion of the city of Saint 
John, N.B., by lire, on the 20th of June, 1877, cast a gloom 
over the whole Dominion, and sent consternation throughout 
the length and breadth of the United States. The pu1)lic 
buildings destroyed were the Post Office, Bank of New Bruns- 
wick, City Building, Custom House ; Maritime Bank Building, 
in which are the bank, that of Montreal and Nova Scotia, office 
school trustees, etc. ; Bank of Nova Scotia Buikling ; Academy 
of Music, in which Avas the Knights of Pythias Hall ; Victoria 
Hotel ; Odd Fellows' Hall ; No. 1 Engine-house ; Orange Hall, 
King street; Temperance Hall, King street, east; Dramatic 
Lyceum ; Victoria School-house ; Temple of Honor, Wiggin's 
Building ; Barnes Hotel ; the Eoyal Hotel ; Saint John Hotel ; 
Acadia Hotel ; the Brunswick House ; Bay View Hotel ; Inter- 
national Hotel ; Wiggin's Orphan Asylum. The churches 
burnt are Trinity ; Saint Andrew's Church, Germain street ; 
Methodist, Germain street ; Baptist Church, Germain street ; 
Christian Church, Duke street ; Saint James Church ; Leinster- 
street Baptist ; the Centenary ; Camarhen-street Mission 
(Methodist) ; Saint David's Church ; Reformed Presbyterian 



576 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



Church ; Sheffield-street Mission House. Money, provisions, 
clothing, etc., were sent from all parts of the Dominion, and 
the people of the United States, who had l)een taught the 

lesson of charity by the Chi- 
cago and Boston fires, sent 
freely of their means. But 
Saint John is rising from her 
ashes, and will soon be more 
magnificent than before. 

13. I regret the want of 
space in this volume to give 
my readers a description of 
the public w^orks in the Do- 
minion, especially of the grand 
Intercolonial line of railroad, 
stretching from Halifax to 
Queljec, which has for some 
time been in successful op- 
eration ; but I must refer all 
to the second volume of my 
larger work, for an extensive 
account of these things, as 




also for fuller sketches of the civil government, militia system, 
laws and courts, principal cities, etc. Leaving the Dominion 
of Canada, with having thus imperfectly traced the general 
features of its history, let us now turn to glance at contempo- 
rary events in the United States, and then direct our attention 
to England, and thence to an account of the late Turko-Russian 
war, with which it is intended to close this volume. 



CHAPTER XLIV. 

THE UNITED STATES FROM 18G7 TO 1878. 

THE ADMINISTRATION OF GENERAL U. S. GRANT — INAUGURATION OF HAYES. 

1 . Lincoln had fallen by the assassin, and the vice-president, 
Johnson, had taken his place. The new president had no 
claims upon the republic, except that he, being a life-long 
Democrat, had remained faithful to the Union, and it was not 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 577 

long before bis imperious disposition bad antagonized most of 
tbe Eei)u])lican leaders. Two men more completely unlike 
tban Jobnson and bis great predecessor could bardly be found. 
The new president assumed tbe duties of bis office witbin a few 
bours of tbe deatb of Abrabam Lincoln, and tbe work of tbe 
administration suffered cbanges, but no pause. Grant was 
already disbanding tbe army, baving dismissed tbe Confederate 
soldiery upon tbeir parol. Tbe terms extended to Lee and tbe 
brave men wbo bad foiigbt under bim would bave been annulled 
by Jobnson ; but Grant came to tbe rescue, and tbe indictment 
for treason wbicb impended was reluctantly abandoned. Tbe 
president -would fain carry Grant's approval witb bim in tbe 
devious courses wbicb already promised an extension of rule, 
as tbe name of tbe successful general was a tower of strength 
all over tbe Union. Congress was eager to crown bim witb 
honors ; private citizens, in tbeir bounty and munificence, gave 
him wealth and possessions ; be was tbe hero of society. 

2. Eeconstruction caused a quarrel between Congress and 
the president, who recognized State governments in Virginia, 
Tennessee, Arkansas, and Louisiana, and appointed provisional 
ofllcers in tbe other States wbicb bad seceded, claiming that the 
Union never had been broken, and that therefore they had 
never actually lost tbeir rights by their abortive secession. 
Conventions met in tbe States provisionally ofiicered, repu- 
diated secession ordinances and tbe war debt incurred in the 
South, and ratified emancipation. Tbe policy of Jobnson was 
now to remove all legal disabilities, proclaim amnesty to seces- 
sionist oflfenders, except a specified class, on tbeir subscribing 
the oath of allegiance, and, still later, full pardons at sucessive 
stages were given to all secessionists. Before that point Avas 
reached, the thirteenth amendment, ratified by the States, 
was engrossed in tbe constitution, December 28, 18G5. The 
facility witb which Johnson granted pardons upon personal 
applications was one cause of complaint against him. 

3. Congress took issue against tbe presidential policy, as it 
was claimed the power to readmit belonged to that ])ody. 
Proclamations and orders, Avliile the land was at peace, could 
have no poAver in tbe eyes of Congress, and bills Av^ere jxassed 
over the \'eto providing for tbe continuance in office of civil 
servants until tbe Senate indorsed tbeir removal ; tbe protection 
of freedmen and destitute Avhites in the South, and for the 
security of the colored race in tbeir newly-conferred civil 
rights. These acts, covering tbe Freedmen's Bureau, tenure 



ijJS HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

of ofiice, uiid civil rights, constituted an open breach. Ten- 
nessee was restored to her position, having accepted the four- 
teenth amendment; but the other States, under Johnson's 
provisional appointees, refusing acquiescence, were placed 
under military rule March 2, 18G7. Generals in charge of the 
contumacious districts conducted elections to remodel State 
constitutions, and after much bitterness there were governments 
established in the several States on such terms as satisfied the 
demands of Congress. One State will serve to illustrate the 
action everywhere, as the general features were the same, and 
local peculiarities are of little moment here. The State of Arkan- 
sas, controlled by Union troops in 18G4, amended its constitu- 
tion and reorganized its Legislature ; but when the test Avas 
applied by Congress, the State, willing to accept readmissiou 
to its former rights, would not remove the disabilities of the 
Union part}'. Military rule succeeded for four years, and in 
18G8 all the demands of Congress having been conceded, the 
State was readmitted to the Union, over the veto of President 
Johnson. Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, and North 
and South Carolina, came in at the same time, June 2-1, 18G8, 
under similar conditions. Thus stood the quarrel between the 
executive and legislative branches of the government for years, 
while the country pursued its course, slowly recovering its 
former tone. The revenues at the close of the war, from rev- 
enue stamps, taxes on incomes and manufactures, duties on 
imports, and other sources, reached the enormous aggregate 
of three hundred million dollars per year ; but the interest on 
the war debt was one hundred and thirty million dollars ; s'ill 
the debt had been reduced by thirty-one million dollars in 
18GG, before the extra troops had been entirely disbanded. 

4. The removal of Stanton, the secretary of war, by the 
president, in August, 18G7, was submitted to under protest by 
Mr. Stanton, as contrary to the Tenure of Office Act, passed 
in INIarch. Gen. Grant was appointed in his stead by the 
president, and Congress gave him such powers as subordinates 
seldom hold, so complete was their distrust of Johnson ; but 
Congress would not confirm the removal of Stanton. For 
some time Grant was able to pursue his course, not conflicting 
with either side ; but eventually, when it became nccessavy to 
break the law or break with Johnson, he cast his lot agamst 
the president. The popularity of Grant rose to a greater 
height than ever. Johnson had no popularity save among tho 
men who had endeavored to break the Union. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 579 

5. Impeachinij the president was the final atrokc of Con- 
gress, the order being made by an immense majority on the 
24th of February, 18(58. The trial commenced on the 23d day 
of March, 18G8, and resulted, on the IGth and 25th of May, 
in thirty-five votes against the president, to nineteen in his 
favor. One vote changed and he would have been convicted of 
high crimes and misdemeanors by the required two-thirds 
majority. The remainder of his term in office was compara- 
tively peaceful, and after its expiring he retired to Tennessee, 
where, after two failures to secure election, he was sent to the 
United States Senate in 1875, and died in office, July 31, in 
the same year. 

6. Gen. Sheridan was commissioned to suppress the Indian 
war in the south-Avest, which had grown to considerable dimen- 
sions in 18()5-G ; but the battle of AVacheta terminated the 
struggle in 18G8, when Black Kettle and a large body of his 
braves were surprised and slain by Custer's cavalry. 

7. Emperor jNIaximilian^. Louis Napoleon of France 
hoped for a Confederate success, and wdiilc the war was pend- 
ing he assisted the imperialist faction in Mexico to a temporary 
ascendency, during which the Archduke Maximilian, of Austria, 
was chosen emperor. The United States protested at the time 
against Napoleon's intervention ; but while the civil w\ar was 
pending nothing more could be accomplished. The " Monroe 
doctrine " came into operation as soon as the war was ended, 
and under the pressure the French troops were recalled, where- 
upon Maximilian Avas shot by the Mexican liberals. The con- 
duct of Napoleon in receding from the support of Maximilian 
has been much blamed ; but the astute Emperor of France saw 
that he must be defeated in a prolonged contest with the United 
States. 

8. Joining the Nations. Cyrus W. Field conceived the 
idea, in 1853, of uniting this continent to Europe by an elec- 
tric calde, but the work was encompassed by so many difficul- 
ties that two cables had been lost before 1856. Other 
attempts were made in 1857 and in 1858, the British govern- 
ment and that of the United States supplying the necessary 
ships ; but the only result was a partial and temporary success 
in 1858. AVhile the war lasted capital was not available to re- 
new the enterprise, but in 1865 the penultimate effort came so 
near success that the cable was spliced and completed in 18G6, 
after thirteen years' heroic effort. The triumph for humanity 
cannot be stated in words. William II. SeAvard, secretary of 



580 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

state, conducted the purchase of Ahiska from the Russian 
government in 1867, the price paid for the peninsula, three 
hundred and fifty miles long, by twenty-five miles average 
breadth, being seven million two hundred thousand dollars. 

9. I'he conclusion of the Johnson term of office was near 
at hand. He had "swung round the circle" in vain, the nomi- 
nation songht by him from the Democrats was not procured, 
and the llepublicans nominated and elected Gen. Grant by a 
demonstrative majority, Schujder Colfax being elected vice- 
president. The nomination of the Democrats was given to 
Horatio Seymour and Gen. Frank P. Blair. The enmity man- 
ifested by the late president had l)y no means impaired the 
popularity of the general, and his election was considered 
certain from the first. His administration during the first term 
was peculiarly propitious for the nation, as the strifes which 
arose out of the war largely ceased after his inauguration, on 
the 4th of March, ISGi). The war-debt continued to be re- 
duced, and the Alabama claims were, during his presidency, 
referred to the arbitration of the congress appointed by both 
powers, under the award of wdiich Great Britain paid fifteen 
million five hundred thousand dollars for actual losses of ships' 
cargoes and interest, consequent upon that government having 
failed in due dili2:ence in regard to the Alabama and the Florida 
l)rivateers. The rules for international government suggested 
by the award of the tribunal at Geneva are even more valuable 
than the sum paid by England in pursuance of that decision. 
During the latter part of the first term many of the Republi- 
cans withdrew from the Republican party, and ran Horace 
Greeley for the presidency, in conjunction with the Democratic 
section of politicians ; but the result proved that the general's 
popularity had not waned with the masses, as he received a 
larger vote on that occasion and a larger majority than any 
former president since the nomination of Gen. Washington. 

10. The Union Pacific Railroad, afterwards disastrous to 
many reputations, and often referred to as an evidence of the 
corruption that almost invariably grows out of civil wars, was 
in its inception a grand work, and it has been found of such 
value for the facilities which it affords to commerce and pas- 
sengers between the Atlantic and the Pacific coasts, that men 
are constrained to wonder how the business of the world was 
conducted before Boston, New York, Philadelphia, and Wash- 
ington were joined by the iron road to San Francisco, so that 
freight and travel can pass from one ocean to the other in the 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 581 

brief space of one week, and without the luxurious traveller 
losing one hour of his accustomed sleep. 

11. The fifteenth amendment, guaranteeing to every man the 
right of suffrage without regard to "race, color, or previous 
condition of servitude," originated under the administration of 
President Grant, and, having been duly ratified, was announced 
as part of the constitution on the 30th of March, 1870. The 
negro is now under no disability in that country save such as 
that under which he labors by the law of nature. 

12. General Amnesty. The nation having, to a great 
extent, recovered from the effects of the war, and popular feel- 
ings having considerably softened as regards the South and its 
ill-starred effort, a general amnesty was proclaimed which 
covered all persons connected with the civil war ; but the South 
cannot forget her own errors and sufferings so readily as the 
North, and in consequence the work of reconstruction within 
the law goes on much more slowly than the legislative action of 
Congress. It is not easy for men Avho have been from their 
birth accustomed to look upon colored persons as chattels and 
subordinates to submit to a reconstruction which rais*s the 
negro in an electoral and legal sense to their level ; but, slowly 
or not, the work progresses, and the next generation will see 
the southern States far on the way toward the North in general 
Ijrosperity. It is much to the credit of the North that a man 
of such strength of mind and power over human affections as 
Alexander Hamilton Stephens, vice-president of the Confederate 
States, is now a member of Congress, against w4iom no man 
cites his career in that office to his discredit ; but it is often re- 
meml)ered l)y his personal friends, who are many, even among 
his political antagonists, that, on the night of November 14, 
1860, in the Legislature that had already resolved upon seces- 
sion, this man exerted all his eloquence to prevent the decision 
being arrived at, to which, once passed, he loyally adhered 
through peril and storm. 

13. Horace Greeley's candidature and death illustrate the 
strong feeling which prevailed among certain classes against 
Gen. Grant's reelection. If there was a man in the Union for 
whom the South had a hatred, which was not relieved by per- 
sonal regard, that man was the editor of the New York 
"Tribune " ; yet all that animosity was smothered in the intense 
desire to defeat Grant ; and after the Liberal convention, at Cin- 
cinnati, in May, 1872, had given Greeley their nomination, the 
Democratic convention, in Baltimore, in the following July, pre- 



582 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

sented him to the Union as their candidate also for the office of 
president. There were then, as there are now and will be for 
many years to come, whether the party in charge of public 
affairs may be changed or not, awkward suspicions of jobbing 
and corruption among high officers in the State, and in conse- 
quence many Vi^ho had been supporters of the Repul)lican party 
were inclined to draw back from the organization at that time ; 
besides ^vhich there was a belief that the men of the North and 
South Avould shake hands across the bloody chasm, under a pres- 
ident nominated by the South, in conjunction with the North ; 
but all these circumstances combined, added to feelings of per- 
sonal love which were inspired by Greeley among those who 
knew his sterling qualities, could not save him from a terrible 
defeat, which unsettled his mental and bodily health, and ter- 
minated his life on the 29th of IS'ovember, 1872. 

14. Schuyler Colfax, who was vice-president with Grant 
during the tirst term of office, came of good lineage, being a 
giandson of one of Washington's generals. From 1854 to 
1861) he sat in Congress as one of the representatives of 
Indiana, and during six reelections his record wasunimpeached. 
The conflict in Kansas called him to the front in Congress, in 
1856, when he depicted in eloquent terms the sulFerings and 
wrongs of the free settlers. From his general suavity and 
evident capacity INIr. Colfax was chosen speaker of the house 
in 1863, the like honor being conferred upon him again in 1865 
and in 1867 ; and it was said of him that he proved himself the 
most popular speaker of the house since Henry Clay. When 
the nominations were made by the Republican party in May, 
1868, his name was associated with that of Gen. Grant. It 
assisted him materially with the people that he had been during 
the civil war one of the steadiest and most trusted friends of 
Abraham Lincoln. The election in November, 1868, gave to 
the Republican ticket two hundred and fourteen electoral votes 
out of a total of two hundred and ninety-four. The name of 
Mr. Colfax became unpleasantly mixed up with the proceedings 
of " The Credit Mobilier of America," an organization chartered 
in Pennsylvania in 1859, and reorganized in 1864, to carry on 
the construction of the Union Pacitic Railroad. The breath of 
suspicion which then for the tirst time blurred the good repute 
of Mr. Colfax prevented his renomination, probably, in 1872 ; 
but it is only just to the ex-vice-president to say, that there was 
no evidence of corrui)t action on his part, and that his entire 
innocence of the chargres laid at his door is an article of faith 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 583 

with millions of his countrymen. There was a large party in 
the country only too glad to bring clown a man of such high 
standing in the ranks of the Eepublicans, because their chancres 
must needs be improved by the defeat of their political opponents, 
and tor that reason it was deemed advisable to substitute the 
name of Henry Wilson as vice-president in the second nomina- 
tion of Gen. Grant. 

15. Oakes Ames, son of a blacksmith in Easton, Mass., and 
himself brought up to the same trade, having become wealthy 
as a manufacturer of agricultural implements, was in great re- 
pute as a financier in Congress, where he sat for eleven years, 
from 1862 to 1873. When the Union Pacific Railroad Avas to 
be constructed, Mr. Ames was one of the manipulators of the 
Credit Mobilier, and when, later than this, there was a con- 
gressional investigation as to his proceedings among his fellow- 
members, he appears to have either wantonly, or by inadver- 
tence, cast a stigma on Mr. Colfax, by exhibiting in his writing, 
upon a check for a consideral)le sum, the initials of "S. C," 
which he construed to mean Schuyler Colfax. There was, how- 
ever, no evidence that the money went into the hands of the 
vice-president, and there is positive evidence that the check 
never went through his account. Oakes Ames died May 8, 
1873, while the public mind was still undecided as to his share 
in the transaction. 

16. Henry Wilson, the successor of Schuyler Colfax, com- 
menced life as a New Hampshire farm lad, with the barest 
rudiments of an education, to which he added all that lay in his 
power after arriving at man's estate. Not a great man himself, 
it was his good fortune to l)e born at an era when simple forti- 
tude and honesty secured him associations with some of the 
foremost minds of his time, after he had made his way upward 
from the humble occupation in which he began life. Mr. Wil- 
son was one of the fastest friends of Charles Sumner, and after 
the shameful assault upon that gentleman by Preston S. Brooks, 
his remarks in Congress had the effect of concentrating upon 
him the hatred of the pro-slavery party for a time. During his 
term of office he was distinguished by his kind and conciliatory 
tone towards every section of the community, and he died 
before his term of office had expired. He appears to have 
been one of the stockholders in the "Credit MobiUer " organiza- 
tion, but to have gone into the venture as a mere business 
speculation, without any knowledge of a current purpose 
being entertained by any of the parties. Unfortunately, so 



584 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



many schemes of personal aggrandizement have been traced to 
Congress "svithin the past few years, in the fearless investiga- 
tions originated by the Repul)lican party, irrespective of persons, 
place, or associations, that the public have become censorious 
and suspicious, and for that reason the record of Henry Wilson 
was very narrowly scanned by friends and foes, but no damaging 
fact could be discovered. 

17. General Increase. There was a j^roposal that St. 
Domingo, forming part of the island of Hayti, should be an- 
nexed to the United States, and a committee of eminent men, 
nominated by the president to visit the island and report upon 
the proposition, was very favorably impressed in 1871 ; but 
Congress was not convinced by the report submitted, and the 
application was not acceded to. Nebraska came into the Union, 
thirty-seventh in the list of States, on the 1st of March, 1867, 
having been organized as a territory, under the same act as 
Kansas, in the year 1854. The first-named State had not the 
same charms for a slave-holding proprietary as Kansas, and 
therefore it grew more slowly than its neighbor, and was saved 
from the terrible warfare that distracted 
Kansas for years. The State will advance 
by slow degrees to very consideral)lo im- 
portance ; but, for many reasons, does 
not seem likely to keep pace with Kansas, 
which has advantages as to soil, and a 
very considerable start in population. 
Colorado has also been admitted as a 
State. 

18. At the expiration of Gen. Grant's 
second term, the Republicans put in 
nomination Rutherford B. Hayes, of 
Ohio ; and the Democrats Samuel J. 
Tilden, of New York. Mr. Wheeler, of 
New York, was the candidate for vice-president on the Republican 
ticket, and Mr. Hendricks, of Indiana, tilled the second place 
on the Democratic side. The election took place on the 7th of 
November, giving ]Mr. Tilden a popular majority of one hundred 
and rift3'-scven thousand three hundred and ninety-four. The votes 
of Florida, Louisiana, and South Carolina, giving Hayes a major- 
ity, were disputed bythc friends of Mr. Tilden. The Constitution 
of the United States makes it the duty of Congress to canvass the 
electoral votes and to declare the name of the person elected ; 
but as the lower house of Congress was Democratic by a large 




PRESIDENT HAYES. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 585 

majority, and the senate Republican, and as the Democrats of 
the house denied the correctness of the returns from the three 
States mentioned, it became probable that the house would not 
agree in dcclarini^ the result ; therefore neither candidate could 
hold the office of president as the result of the election. To 
avoid the uncertainties and excitement of the country in pros- 
pect, an arrangement was made, under the legislation of 
Congress, which resulted in uniting the two houses in declaring 
Rutherford B. Hayes as the successful candidate. 



CHAPTER XLV. 

ENGLAND FROM 185G TO 186G 

THE REVOLT IN INDIA AN ACCOUNT OF THE INSURRECTION DOMESTIC AFFAIRS 

THE FENIAN OUTBREAK. 

1. In the beginning of 1857 England had already nearly 
forgotten the great war in the East, in which Russia had been 
humbled, and time was afforded for the discussion of domestic 
questions. A fight was made to weaken the government, 
but it was without effect. The revolt in In^dia, the great 
event of 1857-8, for a long while threatened the very existence 
of the queen's empire in the East. On the first report of the 
revolt in England, the people were slow to appreciate the 
great magnitude of the disaster. The first outl)reak occurred 
in May, l)ut July had commenced before the atrocities of Mee- 
rut and Delhi were understood. In India itself, although the 
alarm commenced at an earlier period, the catastrophe Avas no 
less sudden and unforeseen. After the lapse of several months, 
with the aid of unlimited discussion, those Avho were best in- 
formed confessed their inability to explain the causes of the 
revolt. It was probable that the conduct of the Sepoys was 
influenced by many motives, and that, like the great part of 
human actions, it was ultimately decided by circumstances. 
There were suspicions of princely intrigues, strong indications 
of Mussulman conspiracy, and abundant proofs of Hindoo 
fanaticism ; but it was uncertain Avhcther the mutiny was in- 
evitable, and there was reason to believe that the plot exploded 



536 nisTORY OF DOMiyiox of caxada, 

prematurely. One of the most characteristic features of the 
outbreak cousisted iu the blind submission of the stddieiy to 
any casual impulse. !Many rcirimeuts wavered ; some retained 
their allegiance for a time. In several instances the tinal de- 
fection was postponed until success had become virtually hope- 
less ; but throughout the army, as soon as a few ringleaders 
had committed themselves to the cause of rebellion, their com- 
rades followed their example like a flock of sheep after their 
leader. It seems that no familiarity can enable the European 
to understand all the windings of Asiatic character. Among 
the immediate causes of the mutiny it would be strange if no 
place could be assigned to the errors of those in power. 
Supiucness, irresolution, and ill-timed severity were undoubt- 
edly displayed on ditferent occasions. The lirst agitation with 
reference to the greased cartridges occurred during the mouth of 
January in the immediate neighborhood of Calcutta. Early in 
February Gen. Hearsey reported the existence of a plot iu the 
ranks of the 34th regiment, stationed at Barrackpore ; but the 
first open display of mutiny consisted in the refusal of the 19th, 
at Berhampore, to receive the suspected cartridges. The delin- 
quent regiment was ordered for punishment to Barrackpore, 
where, before the sentence was executed, a Sepoy and a native 
officer of the 34th had been guilty of open violence. The scan- 
dalous backwardness of a commanding ofiicer, more solicitous 
for the conversion of his men than for the discharge of his duty, 
would probably have led to an immediate outbreak but for the 
read}' gallantry of Gen. Hearsey. Two days afterwards the 19th 
and 34th regiments were publicly dislianded, and general orders 
were issued for the purpose of removing any genuine alarm 
which might have been felt as to the obnoxious cartridges. At 
a subsequent period the remainder of the native troops at 
Barrackpore were gradually disarmed without any actual dis- 
aster. The governor-general continued for many months to 
surround himself with his usual body-guard of 3Iahomedan 
cavahy, and the garrison of Dinapore, in defiance of repeated 
remonstrances, remained in possession of the means of offence. 
It must not forgotten that at the last moment the disarmament 
of these troops could have been successfully effected if the 
commanding officer of the station had done his duty ; but the 
government, which continued an incompetent general in com- 
mand, was in some degree responsil)le for the mischief which 
resulted from the escape of the Dinapore mutineers. 

2. The commander-in-chief, a holiday soldier, who had 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 587 

never seen service either iu peace or war, was iii the mean time 
enjoying the pleasant climate of Simla. He approved the sen- 
tence of a court-martial l)y which cii>hty-five men of the Meeriit 
garrison had been condemned to hard labor for ten years on 
account of a refusal to receive the cartridges. The prisoners 
had been fettered in the presence of their comrades, and they 
were confined in the common prison. This punishment was the 
immediate provocation to the decisive oucl)reak which occurred 
at Mccrut on the 10th of May, 18.j7. If the crisis had been 
met with ordinary vigor and ability, the mutiny might have been 
crushed at its commencement. The Third Light Cavaliy and 
the Eleventh and Twentieth Regiments of Infantry lirst began 
the series of murders and brutalities which rendered the Bengal 
Sejio}^ infamous throughout the world. xVll the otHccrs M'ithin 
reach were cut down, the helpless population of the cantonment 
were outraged or massacred, w^hile Gen. Hewitt, with fifteen 
hundred European troops, was unable either to protect the sta- 
tion or to impede the flight of the mutineers. The revolted 
regiments at once marched to Delhi, where a great arsenal had 
been entrusted to the exclusive care of native troops. The gar- 
rison instantly joined the mutineers ; the atrocities of Meerut 
were repeated, and the descendant of the mogul was openly 
proclaimed as King or Emperor of India. The pensioned 
i:)rinces of the royal house took an active part in the uns^oeaka- 
ble brutalities which were perpetrated upon English women in 
the streets of the capital ; some of the miscreants suffered for 
their unpardonable crime. 

3. On the 27th of ^h\y Gen. Anson died of cholera during 
his advance upon Delhi. Sir II. Barnard, who took the com- 
mand of the besieging force, afterwards fell a victim to the same 
disease. Gen. Reed was forced by bad health to resign the 
command, and the honor of capturing the rebellious capital was 
reserved for Gen. "Wilson. "When the siege had scarcely com- 
menced, the mutiny rai)idly spread over the whole of Ilindos- 
tan. By the end of June fifty thousand men had deserted 
their standards and turned their arms against the government. 
At many stations the crimes of Delhi were imitated, and in one 
fearful instance they were surpassed. Nana Sahil), an adopted 
son of the ex-peishwa of the ]\Iahrattas, ofiered the services 
of his troops to protect the English treasury at Cawnpore, and 
then placed himself at the head of the mutineers. Soon after- 
wards, iu violation of his ph'ghted faith, he slaughtered the 
garrison of Cawnpore, and on the victorious advance of Have- 



588 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

lock he murdered in cold blood the women and children who 
had been reserved from the original massacre. The treacherous 
Mahratta owes a reckoning for a thousand English lives delib- 
erately sacrificed to his wanton barbarity. It seems that his 
crimes only strengthened his hold on the armed hordes who 
acknowledged his command. 

4. Similar scenes were exhibited on a smaller scale wher- 
ever Sepoy rebels could surprise a defenceless station ; but in 
this emergency the ruling race turned to bay with a desperate 
and irresistible courage which has scarcely a precedent in history. 
At Agra, at Arrah, at Azimghur, wherever a few soldiers and 
civilians had escaped the first massacre, the rebels were taught 
the inherent superiority of the English character. In many 
places a mutinous regiment was held in check by forces Avhich, 
to the full knowledge of their officers, were themselves on the 
eve of revolt. At the worst, the rifle or the revolver secured 
preliminary vengeance before an Englishman succuml)cd to irre- 
sistible numbers ; but the resolute skill with which all resources 
for defence were made available confers still higher honor on 
the English character. The elFect of the same qualities, long 
before exhibited by the statesmen and administrators of the 
Eastern empire, was shown in the abstinence of the native 
princes and population from participation in the revolt. If a 
pretended peishwah had put himself at the head of the mutineers, 
the two chief ^lahratta rajahs were faithful, notwithstanding 
the defection of their contingents. Still more important was 
the fidelity of the nizam under the influence of his able minister ; 
Gholab Singh and Jung Bahadoor, of Nepaul, potentates from 
whom Sir 0. Napier apprehended imminent danger to English 
dominions, behaved with exemplary good faith. Beyond the 
walls of the palace of Delhi and the limits of Oude no move- 
ment took place which can be described as a popular or dynastic 
rebellion. 

5. The influence of wisdom, of justice, aiid of courage over 
men was most strikingly exhibited in the conquered Punjab. 
The key of the territory at Peshawur was in the hands of reso- 
lute soldiers, who knew that the greater part of their troops 
were on the eve of mutin3^ Cotton, Edwards, and Nicholson 
were equal to the occasion. The forts Avere occupied with 
trustworthy troops, the suspected regiments were disarmed, 
criminals were blown from guns in the presence of thousands of 
their accomplices, guilty fugitives were seized by the neighbor- 
ing tribes, and bodies of the highlanders, previously in arms 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 589 

against the British power, were enrolled to take the place of the 
deserters. The chief authority in the Punjab was, happily, in 
the hands of a hero and a statesman. Sir John Lawrence not 
only saved his own province from revolt, but made it a military 
basis for the operations against Delhi. Sikhs and Europeans 
were directed towards the East, while the Bensfal reijiments 
were disarmed ; convoys of provisions and stores retraced the 
march of previous conquest. The gallant Nicholson left the 
scene of his early fame to find a glorious death at the gates of 
the conquered city. The vigilance of the proconsul was after- 
wards indicated by the rapid recall of European troops as soon 
as they had performed the one indispensable service. 

G. The capture of Delhi before the arrival of an}^ reinforce- 
ment from England was a great military feat, and a solid advan- 
tage. The rebel garrison, exclusive of the inhabitants, always 
outnumbered the besieging army, and they had the connnand of 
an arsenal Avhich, after several months' consumption, was still 
unexhausted. The general waited patiently until he was ready 
for the assault, and not a moment longer. Before the end of 
September the Mogul king had ended his three months' reign 
in a prison, while the carcasses of his hateful offspring were, as 
in old Hebrew story, exposed in the gates of the city. 

7. The interest of the struggle became chiefly concentrated 
round Lucknow, where a few Europeans, encumbered with the 
care of women and children, maintained themselves in a hostile 
city of three hundred thousand inhabitants against a beleaguer- 
ing force estimated at seventy thousand men. Sir Henry Law- 
rence suppressed the first mutiny in Oude, but the annexed 
kingdom furnished abundant reinforcements to the Sepoys, who 
were themselves for the most part natives of the adjacent dis- 
tricts. From the death of the noble soldier who governed the 
territory till the middle of November the garrison had been 
subject to an almost unbroken blockade. The march of Have- 
lock to its relief aave occasion for the most brilliant series of 
exploits in the campaign, but the numbers of the enemy up to 
the time of Sir Colin Campbell's arrival were too overwhelming 
to admit of complete success. The year closed with the report 
of the final triumph, which had been so long and so anxiously 
expected. The commander-in-chief commenced operations on 
the 13th of November, and his advance from the Alumbagh to 
the Lucknow residency was uninterrupted by check or defeat. 
Such, however, were the strength of the defences and the resolu- 
tion of the febels, that it was only after five days of continuous 



590 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

fighting that Sir C. Campbell was able to open communications 
with Sir J. Outram. Nevertheless, after the capture of Delhi 
and the arrival of Outram and Havelock at Lucknow, all men 
fcit that the tide had turned. The government had maintained 
itself and reasserted its supremacy before the arrival of aid from 
England. The only reinforcements had been derived from 
Ceylon, from Mauritins, from the Cape, and from the China 
force, Avhich was fortunately intercepted on its road. 

8. The year 1857 closed in England with the tidings that 
Sir Colin Campbell, after relieving Lucknow, had temporarily 
evacuated the hostile capital and returned to inflict a signal blow 
on the Gwaiior army at Cawnpore. The suflerings and exploits 
of the beleiiguered garrison were fully recorded by Mr. Rees 
and My. Gubbins, and they were worthily commemorated by Gen. 
Ingiis in his simple and eloquent despatch. No episode of the 
war had excited so fev^erish an interest in England, and the final 
rescue of the besieged Avas welcomed in every household as if it 
had been a relief from personal or domestic anxiety ; but the 
common joy was tempered by universal regret for the death of 
HavelocI^. Above every other leader in the war he had been 
generally recognized as a hero of the true national type. His 
simple character, his religious enthusiasm, and the rare fortune 
•which crowned with merited glory a long life of distinguished 
devotion to duty, all appealed to the deepest sympathies of the 
people ; and, although no soldier could fall at a happier moment, 
there was a natural feeling of disappointment that he should 
have died before he knew how fully he was appreciated by his 
countrymen. Even foreigners of English descent recognized in 
Havelock the favorite characteristics of his race ; and when his 
death was reported at New York the vessels in 'the harbor 
lowered their flags in token of mourning for the gallant old 
foreign general. A few weeks later the country sufl'ered a loss 
not less painful in the death of Sir AVilliam Peel, who, at the 
head of his naval brigade, had performed the part of a brilliant 
artillery oificer in Sir Colin Campbell's operations. No seaman 
of his time appeared to inherit in so large a proportion the in- 
trepid daring and the felicitous enthusiasm which gave Nelson 
the instinct of victory. If his contempt of personal danger was 
excessive, he never overlooked the minutest detail which could 
tend to the safety or success of his undertakings, for the mechan- 
ical aptitude which belongs to a sailor formed a principal part of 
his character, and indicated his peculiar fitness for his profession. 

9. Sir Colin Campbells retreat from Lucknow with his vast 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 591 

and cumbrous convoy, though it was generally recognized as a 
masterly teat of a"ms, has been sometimes censured by military 
critics. It is said that the enemy was cowed by the capture of 
the city, and that the subsequent evacuation was regarded as a 
triumph of the insurgents. It is not surprising that the garrison 
should have quitted the scene of its heroism with regret, nor 
can it be doubted that Geueral Inglis was justified in his asser- 
tion that he could hold the fortress against all opponents ; but 
the commander-in-chief had to consider the whole plan of the 
campaign as well as the circumstances at Lucknow, and he was 
also compelled to take into consideration the pobtical objects 
of the government. By the retrograde movement to Cawnpore 
Sir Colin Campbell relieved his army from the incumbrance of 
protecting women and children, and his timel}' arrival rescued 
his rear-jjuard and his communications from a serious danger. 
Certain of recovering Lucknow without difficulty at his own 
predetermined time, the commander-in-chief halted for two 
months at Cawnpore, while his reinforcements were coming for- 
ward, and his lieutenants and allies were advancing from difter- 
ent directions tow^ards the centre of operations. In the mean time 
movable columns cleared the neighboring districts from in- 
surrection, and after two months the advance on Lucknow was 
resumed with an irresistil)le artillery. While the main army 
was at Cawnpore General Franks was fighting his way from the 
east ; Jung Bahadoor, Avitli a large force of Ghoorkas, descended 
from Nepaul, and it was hoped that Sir Hugh Rose would pene- 
trate through Central India in time to take a decisive part iu the 
operations. Sir James Outram, under the orders of Sir Colin 
Campbell, took Lucknow with little loss ; but the Ghoorkas 
proved inefficient. Sir Hugh Ivose was unavoidably detained, 
and the bulk of the garrison succeeded in escaping through the 
interstices of the investing army. Yet the capture of their guns 
and stores, as well as the capital itself, was justly esteemed a 
proof that the war on a large scale was at an end, although it 
was probable that a long series of detached conflicts would still 
test the vigor and endurance of the army. After the capture 
of Lucknow the commander-in-chief once more remained station- 
ary for a time, when he made preparations for the gradual sub- 
jugation of Oude. All the conditions of the strnggle had 
changed since the previous summer, and there was no longer 
any occasion for such haste as might be found inconsistent with 
any deliberate system of operations. The movements of the 
first campaign, terminating with the siege of Delhi, had for their 



592 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

base the remote and insecure position of Lahore, and Sir John 
Lawrence might at any moment have been forced to reserve or 
to withdraw his reinforcements for tlie indispensable protection 
of the Punjab. In the second campaign Lord Clyde relied on 
his communications with Calcutta, and it has been justly ob- 
served that the true basis of his operations was London or 
Southampton. The unequalled resources of England were even 
more strikingly displayed during that contest than in the organ- 
ization of the powerful army which was collected in the Crimea 
at the end of the Russian war. The European force in India 
was raised to one hundred thousand men, while an equal num- 
ber remained in the United Kingdom as a reserve, and for the 
purposes of defence. The old prejudice that maritime greatness 
was incompatible with military strength was found by experience 
to be the reverse of the truth. It would be more accurate to 
assert that English armies had the means of acting wherever 
they could find an approachable sea-coast for the commencement 
of their operations. Towards the close of the cold season Lord 
Clyde marched into the north of Oude, dispersing with little 
difficulty the insurgent forces which attempted resistance under 
the begum, the nawab of Bareilly, and the moulvie. A suc- 
cessful expedition was saddened by the loss of many valuable 
lives, and especially that of Brigadier Adrian Hope, one of the 
most efficient and promising officers of the army. Early in June 
the commander-in-chief, in suspending active operations for the 
summer, was able to congratulate his troops on the suppression 
of all open opposition, and on the prospect of an early termina- 
tion of the war. In the south a brilliant and arduous campaign 
was prolonged far into the summer. At the commencement of 
the year Sir Hugh Rose began his march from Indore, in the 
hope of taking a part in the investment of Lucknow ; but the 
chiefs in Central India were in insurrection, there were many 
strong places to reduce, and the Gwalior contingent, after its 
repulse at Cawnpore, still held together and watched the passage 
of the Jumna at Calpee. At Saugor and at Kotah the superi- 
ority of the British troops was established, and at Jhansi the 
ranee, one of the remarkable heroines w^ho were produced by 
the war, was defeated in a pitched battle, and the fortress was 
suljsequently stormed. When the Calpee army, avoiding a 
collision, marched southwards upon Gwalior, Scindia's troops, 
with the exception of his body-guard, immediately joined the 
mutineers, so that the maharajah, driven from his capital, was 
compelled to take refuge in the English camp. Sir Hugh Rose, 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 593 

who was on the pomt of resigning his command, instantly col- 
lected all the forces within his reach, marched upon Gwalior, 
defeated the mutineers, and retook the fortress, which had been 
reputed impregnable. The restoration of the faithful JMahratta 
ruler former a worthy termination to the most daring and skilful 
among the subsidiary campaigns of the year. With the royal 
amnesty in one hand, and the means of instant punishment in 
the other, Lord Clyde succeeded in procuring the submission of 
many troublesome opponents ; and the civil authorities, follow- 
ing in his track, were able, in a limited period, to complete the 
disarmament of the country. Beyond the limits of Oude the 
so-called army of the peishwa, conhding in the rapidity of its 
movements, almost alone maintained the rebellion, Avhich once 
threatened to embrace the whole of India. 

10. Thus, through the bravery and indefatigable eiforts of 
British military officers, the Indian rebellion came to an end. 
In the same vear, 1858, serious difficulties arose between Ens^- 
land and China, but these were settled to the honor and prolit 
of the former power. The grandest domestic event of the year, 
which excited intense interest, was the marriage of the princess 
royal. The internal history of England during the fifteen 
years next succeeding, presents little excitement or variety. The 
death of the prince consort, in the early part of 18G2, shed a 
gloom over the kingdom, and his loss materially afiected the 
Ijrilliancy and prosperity of the great exhibition in South 
Kensington. Nevertheless, the enterprise attracted for six suc- 
cessive months an uninterrupted stream of visitors from the 
country and from the continent, as well as from London itself. 
The spectacle was less picturesque than the previous show in 
1851 ; nor Avas it possible that it should suggest illusions of 
universal peace, to be founded on unlimited commercial inter- 
course. Yet the collection was richer and more complete than 
the previous exhibition, and competent judges were not dissatis- 
fied with the intermediate progress of art and industry. The 
advance of commercial liberality was marked by the unrestricted 
admission of all manufactured articles from every part of the 
world. In 18 il it had been necessary to make special arrange- 
ments for the importation of dutiable commodities, which might 
otherwise have competed unfairly with the ordinary stocks of 
merchants and dealers. 

11. The year 18G5 was characterized by some important 
occurrences. These Avere the appearance of the cattle plague in 
Great Britain, and the Fenian conspiracy in Ireland. Down to 



594 HISTORY OF dominion of CANADA, 

the middle of December, 1865, fifty thousand reported cases of 
cattle disease had in the great majority of cases ended fatally. 
Although the plague subsided in some parts of the country, 
while other districts were exempt from its ravages, the total 
number of attacks was increasing from week to week. A royal 
commission recommended a temporary prohibition of all move- 
ment of cattle, and local authorities, acting, with imperfect con- 
cert, under the general guidance of the Privy Council, in many 
places suspended cattle markets and fairs. The criminal folly 
of Fenianism was almost equally morbid and unaccountable. 
The design of establishing an Irish republic by American aid 
appears to have been formed two or three years previous, at a 
time when animosity to England was professed even more vocif- 
erously than usual by all parties in the United States. The 
plot, said the London " Times " of 1865, " exhibits in a concrete 
form American rhodomontade, and the more serious element of 
Irish disaffection. The Fenian agents were provided Avith con- 
siderable sums of money, arising from contributions by Irish 
settlers in America ; they imported arms ; they found numerous 
dupes ready to take oaths, and to drill in secrecy ; and as the 
Federal armies were disbanded, a few otBcerscame to take com- 
mand in the expected insurrection. The Irish government had 
early become acquainted with the secret of the conspiracy, and 
when the time was ripe for action Lord Wodehouse and his 
subordinates struck the traitors with celerity and vigor. The 
principal ringleaders were arrested; and, with the exception of 
Stephens, the chief author of the plot, who unfortunately 
escaped from prison, they have been sentenced to severe, but not 
excessive, punishments, after conviction by juries in trials con- 
ducted with exemplary calmness and impartiality. Although 
the discontent of the Irish peasantry constitutes a grave political 
evil, it is in some degree satisfactory to find that the latest proj- 
ect of rebellion has not been countenanced by a single member 
of the upper classes, or by a single Roman Catholic priest. The 
conspiracy has now contracted into the dimensions of a club, 
which att'ects the style of an Irish government and Legislature 
in its lodging at New York. In conformity with national 
tradition, the president is said to have already quarrelled with 
the senate, and the entire 'organization is ridiculed by all 
sensible Americans. During the recent State elections the 
Democratic party bid for the Irish vote by professing Fenian 
sympathies ; but in ordinary times the Fenians are not even 
respected as serious enemies of England." 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 595 



CHAPTEE XLYI. 

ENGLAND EROM 186G TO 1878. 

1. The year 1866 was one of gloomy events in England. 
A long season of prosperous tranquillity was now interrupted 
by political and commercial disturbances, and by a conscious- 
ness of the relative inctficiency of the national armaments, and 
of a proportionately declining or suspended influence in the 
councils of the world. The sources of public wealth were 
happily untouched, for, in spite of monetary difliculties, the 
amount of imports and exports had not diminished, nor had 
manutacturing industry been extraordinarily depressed. The 
great financial collapse of the spring of 1866, though it produced 
wide-spread difficulty and distress, represented no diminution 
in the stock of useful commodities, or in the aggregate pos- 
session of the community. Except in a limited number of 
cases, in which capital had been withdrawn from profitable 
enterprises, losses and gains had, as on a settling-day after a 
race-meeting, been approximately balanced. The hundreds of 
millions by which the value of securities and fixed investments 
bad been diminished, were added to the purchasing power of 
ready money. The stagnation of the stock exchange by the 
side of an overflowing money-market, although it reduced 
thousands of families to real and tangible poverty, was but a 
transfer of items from one page of *a. ledger to another. The 
social and moral evils of a financial crisis were out of all pro- 
portion to the collective loss. The sufferers often belonged 
to classes which could ill afford pecuniary sacrifices, and they 
found no consolation in the indirect advantages which followed 
from the bursting of commercial bubbles. The panic of 1866 
recurred after the unusually short interval of eight years and a 
half, and there followed an unprecedented absence of elasticity 
in the revival of credit. During the early part of the year a 
high rate of interest indicated unusual pressure ; but it was 
commonly asserted that trade was healthy, and the failure of 
one or two country banks was attributed to local causes. In 
April the greater part of the ordinary stock of the London, 
Chatham, and Dover Railway was advertised for sale at an 
apparently ruinous discount, and it was known that several 



596 HISTORY OF dominion of CANADA, 

railway contractors were unable to obtain a continuance of the 
advances on which their solvency depended. The first week 
of May was marked ])y increased disquiet and anxiety, and on 
the 10th of the month the stoppage of the great discount estab- 
lishment of Overend & Gurncy produced universal consterna- 
tion. The business had been transferred only a year before by 
the partners of a well-known firm to a limited joint-stock com- 
pany ; and shareholders and customers had relied with equal 
confidence on the solvency and prosperity of the undertaking. 
At the time of the suspension the engagements of the company 
amounted to nineteen million pounds, and traders and specu- 
lators depended on its resources for a proportionate supply of 
accommodation. No single bankruptcy had ever caused so 
great a shock to credit. The following da}^ produced the 
greatest agitation which had ever been known in London, and 
the government was compelled, as in 1847 and 1857, to 
authorize the Bank of England to issue notes beyond the legal 
limit. It was rumored that the strongest joint-stock banks 
were almost drained of their ready money, nor could it be 
doubted that a slight increase of distrust on the part of de- 
positors might have produced mischievous results. Two or 
three banks, including the Agra and Easterman's Limited Com- 
pany, failed within the week, and several of the new credit 
companies, framed on the French model, were summarily 
crushed. The rate of ten per cent, discount, imposed on the 
Bank of England by government as a condition of additional 
power of issue, lasted from the 11th of May to the 17th of 
August, and although the rate afterwards declined rapidly from 
eight per cent, to six, to five, and to four per cent., the price 
of the funds and of shares in railway and joint-stock companies 
had scarcely risen at the close of the year. For some months 
after the panic English credit fell into entire disrepute on the 
continent, and a circular from the Foreign Office, containing an 
accurate explanation of the distinction between scarcity of 
money and insolvency, appeared only to aggravate the prevail- 
ing " suspicion." At home one important class of securities 
was additionally discredited by the exposure of scandalous 
irregularities in the financial conduct of the London, Chatham, 
and Dover, and the North British Railways. The most pros- 
perous and solvent companies suffered from the doubts which 
had been thrown by unscrupulous directors and managers on 
the reality of their profits, and more especially on the security 
of their debentures. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 597 

2. But a graver and more complicated danger menaced 
England in 1866, consisting in the combinations of workmen. 
Concerning these institutions, the London " Times " of that year 
remarked: "The Trades Unions, as their organization is per- 
fected, become daily more formidable to their employers and to 
the community at large. As long as their success consists in 
the increase of wages at the expense of profits, the question 
concerns only masters and men ; but arbitrary restrictions rap- 
idly tend to raise prices, to discourage enterprise, and to de- 
prive industry and skill of their natural rewards. Artificial 
contrivances for raising the price of labor be3'ond a certain level 
are as absurd in the presence of free trade as a plan of handi- 
capping the horses from a single stable if they had to run in a 
race open to the world. Staflfordshire or Yorkshire Unions may 
easily make iron dearer ; but, unless they can close the Belgian 
furnaces, they must fail in their attempt to tax the consumer 
through the emploAcr. The shallow economists of the work- 
shop have already created an import trade in iron castings, and 
even in locomotive engines, and joiners' fittings are introduced 
from northern ports, while carpenters are striking for wages or 
for the dismissal of apprentices. A scandalous outrage, which 
was lately perpetrated at Shetfield, has been followed by a rapid 
diminution in the trade of the town, nor could the retribution 
cause a moment's regret if the loss fell exclusively on the abet- 
tors of tyranny and persecution. • An attempt to murder a poor 
man, with his family, because he had held aloof from the Saw- 
Grinders' Union, produced from the secretar}^ of that body only 
a mild and com'cntional censure of the crime, accompanied with 
an assertion, afterwards sanctioned by the Union, that the con- 
tumacy of the victim was only less culpable than the attempt 
of the assassin. The moral theories of Sheffield are probably 
not approved by the great body of English artisans, but the in- 
quisitorial despotism of the Unions scarcely provokes among 
their members a murmur of opposition. Like the horse in the 
fable, like volunteers in a regiment, the workmen sacrifice indi- 
vidual freedom for the power, conferred by discipline, of co- 
ercing their employers, and in utter forgetfulness of the economic 
laws which overrule the domestic squabbles of capital and labor. 
While the docility and ready organization of the working-classes 
are exciting fears of a decline in commercial prosperity, our 
great agitator has conceived the project of applying industrial 
combinations to political purposes. The ready obedience of 
homogeneous multitudes to the command of self-appointed lead- 



598 HISTORY OF DOxMINION OF CANADA, 

ers furnishes a suggestive temptation to ambitions demagogues. 
Mr. Bright has boasted of having been the first to discern the 
l^olitical ;capabilities of the Unions, and an unfortunate combi- 
nation of circumstances has, after long disappointment, enabled 
him to make use of their organization. As late as Easter, his 
proposal that crowds should assemble in the streets to inti-midate 
Parliament excited neither attention nor response ; but when 
Mr. Gladstone's unskilful strategy and the divisions of the lib- 
eral majority had proved fatal to the ministerial reform bill, the 
artisans of London and the great manufacturing towns readily 
listened to assertions that their claims had been slighted ; nor 
was reiterated misrepresentation wanting to persuade them that 
their order had been insulted. The Hyde Park meeting, with 
the partial disturbances which followed, showed the possibility 
of alarming the upper and middle classes ; and in the course of 
the autumn vast bodies of men were collected at Birmingham, 
at Manchester, at Leeds, and at Glasgow, to demand universal 
suffrage at the bidding of their leaders with the same unanimity 
they had often displayed in obeying an order to 'strike' for 
wages. Simultaneous meetings were addressed by Mr. Bright, 
in a series of declamations which tended rather to excite the 
fury of his followers against his political opponents than to con- 
vince or conciliate wavering opinion. At Manchester, Mr. 
Bright wantonly referred to the possible contingency of a justi- 
fiable rebellion, and on a later occasion he threatened Parliament 
with the change of peaceable demonstrations into a display of 
force if resistance to his demands were continued at the opening 
of the ensuing session. In the midst of his fiercest invectives 
he never failed to display his characteristic intolerance of free 
parliamentary speech. An unguarded and misinterpreted 
phrase of Mr. Lowe's was denounced as an insult to the work- 
ing-classes, who were at the same time listening to the fiercest 
and most calumnious invectives against the House of Commons. 
The great open-air meetings, including only a single class and 
one set of opinions, have, in the absence of opposition or inter- 
ference, been peaceable and orderly. Grave apprehensions were 
aroused by a notice that all the organized working societies of 
London intended to march through the West End in procession 
on the 3d of December. Their leaders boastfully estimated 
their numbers at two hundred thousand ; but the certainty of 
disturbance and the probability of riot were averted by the dis- 
appointment of their anticipations. The march of twenty-three 
thousand or twenty-five thousand artisans in military order was 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 599 

accomplished with no other inconvenience than the interrup- 
tion for a day of traffic and business. It will be well if the 
incompatibility of similar assemblages with the good order of a 
great capital is understood in London before it has been illus- 
trated, as in Paris, by tragical experience. Large masses of 
men acting in obedience to the word of command may, perhaps, 
not always be instructed to abstain from violence. Some of the 
agitators of the Trades' Unions have already threatened to re- 
produce the procession of 1780 to the Houses of Parliament, 
if they can induce Mr. Bright, like Lord George Gordon, to 
receive their petition at the door of the House of Commons." 
It will not be forgotten that the statement of this journal, al- 
ways conservative and always opposed to popular reform, must 
be discounted by the measure of Canadian freedom. Mr. Bright 
is admired on one side of the Atlantic, by even the best con- 
servatives, for that which occasions the bitterest denunciations 
of bis political enemies on the other. 

3. In 1871 an illness from which the queen suffered, in the 
early part of the autumn, produced many sincere expressions 
of loyal feeling, and the great mass of the community, which 
had never wavered in its attachment to the crown and to the 
royal family, Avas astonished at its own profound emotion when 
it became known that the Prince of Wales was in imminent 
danger. An attack of fever, commencing in November, had 
from the first excited considerable anxiety, though the medical 
reports for three weeks were comparatively encouraging. At 
the end of the first week in December a relapse, which appeared 
to have rendered recovery hopeless, produced an outburst of 
sympathy and sorrow which could only be compared to the 
national grief on the deatli of the Princess Charlotte in 1817. 
In every town crowds waited anxiously for the issue of news- 
papers containing the latest news of the prince, and the gov- 
ernment found it'expedient to forward the medical bulletins to all 
the telegraph offices in the United Kingdom. Throughout India, 
in the colonies, and even in the. United States, the daily progress 
of the disease was recorded and watched ; and in England, in the 
churches of every religious communion, prayers were offered, 
though almost without hope, for the recovery of the prince. 
A natural association directed special attention to the accounts 
of the 14th of December, the day on which, ten years before, 
the prince's father had succumbed to the same disease. On that 
very day, or a few hours earlier, there were symptoms of 



600 IIISTOKY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

amenclmcnt, and before the end of the week the most dangerous 
complications had disappeared. 

4. The year 1872 found Mr. Gladstone at the head of the 
ministry, which position he had held since 18G8. His cabinet 
was slightly strengthened during the year. The recovery of 
the Prince of AV^des from his severe illness, about the com- 
mencement of the year, was a substantial cause for rejoicing 
throughout the whole kingdom. Sir Charles W. Dilke moved, 
in his place in the House of Commons, an inquiry into the ex- 
penditures of the civil list, looking to an exposure of the 
alleged extravagance of the royal family. He defended his 
proposition in an able speech, but, after a reply by Mv. Glad- 
stone, who eulogized the queen, and denied with great 
warmth the statements of Sir Charles, the proposition was 
utterly defeated by two hundred and seventy-six negative votes 
to two affirmative. The Parliament of 1872 was deeply con- 
cerned with the Alabama claims question pending the Geneva 
conference . 

5. In 1873 an indirect vote of want of confidence in Mr. 
Gladstone's cabinet resulted in the defeat of the University 
Education bill (Ireland), a favorite measure with the premier. 
It was subsequently announced by Mr. Gladstone in the Com- 
mons and by Earl Granville in the House of Lords that the 
ministry had resigned, and that the queen had sent for Mr. 
Disraeli to form a conservative cabinet. Meanwhile the latter 
exerted himself to form a cabinet that would command the con- 
fidence of the Commons, but was unsuccessful, and was there- 
fore compelled to inform her majesty of the circumstances. 
Her majesty thereupon sent for Mr. Gladstone and requested 
him to make certain changes in his cabinet and return to office, 
to which he assented. The reason Avhy Mr. Disraeli did not 
accept office as first minister was because there were a majority 
of liberals in the house, and he was known to be a stanch con- 
servative. He knew very well that with such material to be 
controlled a month would not pass before a vote of want of 
confidence would overturn his cabinet. However, after Mr. 
Gladstone's resumption of office in March, 1873, it was evident 
that he held his place by a very frail tenure. He was compelled 
to withdraw some government measures to prevent their defeat, 
and to make all the capital he could out of the Ashantec war, 
which was well managed. He may have lost some prestige in 
asking the additional grant for the Dnke of Edinburgh (the 
second sou of the queen) , in view of his approaching marriage j 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 601 

but this was managed with such skill as not to materially affect 
his strength. During the recess of 1873 he carefully studied 
the state of public feeling. He found his pohtical enemies very 
formidable. The Roman Catholics, under the lead of their 
bishops, were all opposed to the Irish Educational bill. The 
aristocracy, and particularly the clerical portion of it, were sus- 
picious of his disestablishment policy, fearing that England 
might share with Ireland in the measure. Ho could not rely 
upon the Irish home rulers, and the great body of the working- 
men had been turned against him on his refusal to grant an 
extension of suffrage. Altogether the outlook was not promis- 
ing. 

6. In the winter and autumn of 1873 Mr. Gladstone, the 
liberal premier, became satisfied that he could not command a 
working majority in the Commons at the next session, and, 
accordingly, on the 24th of January, 1874, the twentieth Parlia- 
ment was dissolved and writs for a new election issued. The 
returns from these elections gave three hundred and fifty con- 
servatives, two hundred and forty-two liberals, and sixty home 
rulers. The conservatives having thus a clear majority, Mr. 
Gladstone resigned, and the queen sent for Mr. Disraeli, the 
conservative leader, to form a new cabinet. This gave Mr. 
Disraeli a second term as first minister. On the 21st of February 
the new cabinet was announced. It was as follows : — • 

First Lord of the Treasury and Premier. — Right Hon. Bexj. Disraeli. 
Lord High Chancellor. — Lokd CaiRXS, formerly Sir Hugh McCalmont 

Caiuxs. 
Lord President of the Council. — Charles Henry Gordon-Lennox, Duke 

of Riclimond. 
Secretary of State for Home Department. — Right Hon. Richard Assheton 

Cross. 
Lord Privy Seal. — James Howard Harris, Earl of Malmesbury. 
Chancellor of the Exchequer. — Right Hon. Sir Stafford Henry Nortii- 

COTE. 

Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs. — Right Hon. Edward Henry 
Smith-Stanley, Earl of Derby. 

Secretary of State for the Colonies. — Right Hon. Henry Howard M.Her- 
bert, Earl of Carnarvon. 

First Lord of the Admii-aUy. — Right Hon. George Ward Hunt. 

Secretary of State for India. — Right Hon. Robert Arthur Talbot Gas- 
COigne-Cecil, Marquis of Salisbury. 

Secretary of State for War. — Right Hon. Gathorne Hardy. 

Postmaster-General. — Right Hon. Lord John James Robert Manners. 

7. With the foregoing cabinet the great leader, who is still, 
1878, at the head of the government, began his administration 



602 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

in 1874. The war with Ashantee, that had extended through- 
out the previous year, was carried forward under the vigorous 
leadership of Sir Garnet Wolseley, and Avas successfully termi- 
nated in February, 1874, — Coomassie, the capital of Ashantee, 
being captured in that month, and burned, the king, Koffer, 
thereupon suing for peace. The marriage of Prince Alfred, 
Duke of Edinburgh, second son of the queen, to the Grand- 
Duchess Marie of Russia, only daughter of the Czar Alex- 
ander II., was celeln-ated at St. Petersburg, Jan. 21, 1874, 
and the duke and duchess took up their residence in England 
in March. The remains of Dr. Livingstone, who had died in 
Central Africa, May 4, 1873, were brought from Africa, and 
buried with great ceremony in AYestminster Abbey, April 18, 
1874. 

8. The opening of the Eastern question by the insurrection 
in European Turkey led to an earnest reconsideration of the 
position which England ought to occupy. While the confidence 
in the former policy of the government, to maintain under all 
circumstances the integrity of the Turkish Empire, was gener- 
ally shaken, public opinion expressed itself strongly in favor 
of strengthening British influence in Egypt, for the purpose of 
securing the possession of India. While this subject was dis- 
cussed by the English press, the whole world was surprised by 
the announcement that the British government had purchased 
from the Khedive nearly one-half of all the shares of the Suez 
Canal Company. Public opinion in England received this 
clear indication of the intention of the government in regard 
to the Eastern question. We will, however, reserve further 
comment on the Eastern question for succeeding chapters, 
which arc devoted to that question, and to the war between 
Russia and Turkey which resulted. In 1876 a measure was 
carried in Parliament to enable her majesty to assume, in 
addition to her former titles, the st3de and title of "Empress 
of India." The royal family of England consists of the follow- 
ing members : — 



1. Her Majesty Queen Victoria. 

2. Prixcess Victoria (married to the crown Prince of Germany). 

3. Prince Albert Edward, heir apparent. (Prince of Wales married 
daughter of King Christian IX. of Denmark. Issue, two sons and three 
daughters.) 

4. Princess Alice (married to Prince Ludwig of Ilesse). 

5. Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh (married to Grand-Duchess 
Marie of Russia). 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 603 

6. Princess Helena (married Prince Christian of Schleswig-IIolstein- 
Londerburg-Augustenburg) . 

7. Princess Louise (married to Marquis of Lome). 

8. Prince Arthur, Duke of Comiaught. 

9. Prince Leopold. 
10. Princess Beatrice. 



CHAPTER XLVII. 

ENGLAND IN THE NINETEENTH CENTUEY. 

1. We can but glance at a few of the important incidents 
in the general features of social and religious improvement in 
England during that part of the nineteenth century now passed. 
By all means the noblest religious work has been in connection 
with "The British and Foreign Bible Society," an enterprise 
mighty and eternal in its results, yet instigated by a little child. 
Mr. Berard thus tel-ls the incident which led to the formation of 
this society : "A Welsh girl, tripping over her native hills, was 
met by the Rev. Mr. Charles, of Bala. He stopped the child, 
and asked if she could tell him the text on which he had preached 
the preceding Sunday. The little girl hung her head as she 
replied that she had not been able to get at the Bible that 
week. On inquiring the reason, the clergyman found that 
there was but one Bible within several miles, and that this 
child was in the habit of walking a long distance every week, 
over rugged mountain paths, for tlie privilege of reading the 
word of God. The fact tliat a large district of Great Britain 
was destitute of Bibles made a deep impression on the mind of 
Mr. Charles. He visited London, and spoke of it to others. 
Christian hearts were roused, nor Avas it long before the reso- 
lution was made to print and sell Bibles at such prices as would 
enable the poor to obtain them." Thus began, in 1804, with a 
subscription of only three thousand dollars, " The British and 
Foreign Bible Society," which has now a revenue of over eight 
hundred thousand dollars, and has circulated nearly forty mil- 
lions of Bibles and Testaments. 

2. The societies established in the previous century for the 
promotion of religious truth have been greatly lextended during 
the past fifty years. In addition to this, new institutions for 
the same grand purpose have been established by the Church 
of England and the various dissenting bodies. By the good 
offices of these societies, and in connection with similar Christian 



60i HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

enterprises in America, the great blessings of Cliristiau civiliza- 
tion have Ijcen extended to the remotest colonies of Great 
Britain, and to many heathen nations. Schools and churches 
of the Christian faith have been founded in China, India, Africa, 
and the isles of the Pacific Ocean. Sunday schools, first estab- 
lished by ivobert Raikes, in 1780, have become almost universal, 
and there is scarcely a parish or religious society in England 
or the United States in which one or more Sunday school does 
not flourish. It would require a volume much larger than the 
present to record the wonderful triumphs of Christianity in 
the present century, and it is not too much to say that the 
centre of these victories has been in the United Kingdom. 
England has ever been the foremost Christian nation, and the 
great extension of her possessions in all parts of the world 
has been greeted with universal satisfaction, chiefly because 
these have been coextensive with religious and civil liberty. 
The world cannot easily measure the blessings which God has 
seen fit to bestow through the instrumentality of the English 
nation. It is a truth well-knoAvn to all languages that no 
people of the race have done so much for the whole human 
family as the English. 

8. The ]Metropolitan Lunatic Asylum, at Han well, stands 
forth to mark a new era in the history of Christian charity in 
England. Here for the first time in the kinaxlom the barbarous 
system of coercing the insane gave place to that of judicious 
medical treatment. "Instead of being chained in cells, and 
left to idleness, a prey to the fancies of their own disordered 
intellects, employment has been furnished according to the 
abilities of the inmates : the men en2:a2:ed in ffardeninor and 
building ; the w^omen made happy by the industry of the 
needle." 

4. English literature has made some of its most gigantic 
strides during the present century. "An interesting feature 
has been a new style of periodical review. The first which 
appeared was * The Edinburgh Review,' established in 1802, by 
the Rev. Sydney Smith, Messrs., afterwards Lords, Jefl"rey and 
Brougham, and other men of distinguished talent. The con- 
tributors to the columns of this periodical were Whigs, who 
advocated successively the great reform questions of the day. 
The boldness and ability of their writings gave no little sup- 
port to the promoters of the abolition of slavery, the repeal of 
the corn-laws, etc. 'The Quarterly Review,' a Tory publica- 
tion, was established in London, in the year 1809. It is distin- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



guished for beauty of literary composition, and its columns 
have been enriched by the genius of Sir Walter Scott, Southey, 
and Lord Canning. 'Blackwood's Magazine,' designed to 
counteract the Whig influence of 'The Edinburgh Reviev/,' was 
set up in 1817 by its able editor, Professor AVilson, so well 
known as 'Christopher North.'" 

5. The "Society for the Promotion and Diffusion of Useful 
Knowledge" was inaugurated in 1827, and mainly through the 
eflbrts of Mr. Brougham, Lord John Russell, and the Friend 
William Allen. Its object was to cflect the publication, in 
cheap form, of elementary treatises on scientific subjects, such 
as would be within the means and uses of the w^orking-men. 
"The Penny Magazine," "The Penny Cyclopaedia,' and "The 
Library of Entertaining Knowledge," and many other works 
of an entertaining and valuable nature, have been sent forth by 
this society, which, through the influence of Mr. Knight, have 
done a e:rcat Avork in the line of disseminatins: useful knowledsfe 
among the working-class. 

6. The discoveries and improvements in the industrial and 
fine arts have worked a revolution in these departments in the 
last half-century. The breadth of these improvements is com- ■ 
pared only by the distance from the simple Inciter match to the 
mighty steam-engine and electric telegraph. Each year seems 
to unfold some new triumph of genius over the world of mat- 
ter, the latest of which is the telephone, which, be it said to 
the boast of that enterprising republic, is an American inven- 
tion. The telegraph is also an American invention. 

7. "To the Prince Consort of England," says Mr, Berard, 
" is due the praise of having originated the grand idea of an ex- 
hibition of the industry of all nations. To Mr. (afterwards Sir 
Joseph) Paxton belongs the honor of having designed the 
marvellous structure of iron and glass, wherein might be ex- 
hibited fair samples of the Avorld's art and industry. This, the 
largest compact building on the face of the earth, was erected 
in Hyde Pai-k, London, in less than nine months, out of 
materials hitherto wholly untried in the great constructions of 
ancient or modern times. 

' Like Arabia's matchless palace, 
Child of Magic's strong decree, 
One vast globe of living sapphire, 
Eloor, walls, columns, canopy.' 

"Nor was the exhibition within unworthy of the beautiful 
structure. There, during the summer of 1851, v/as represented 



606 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

all that was most excellent in use or beauty of the industry of 
all lands. Literally one hundred nations, from Europe, Asia, 
Africa, America, and the fifth continent, Australia, united in 
the celebration of this jubilee of art. From the 1st day of May, 
when the queen in person opened to her subjects and to the 
world the portals of this marvellous palace, so great was the 
throng of admiring visitors, from every rank and class in 
society, and almost from every quarter of the globe, that the 
great exhibition of 1851 was aptly named 'The World's Fair.' 
To the looker-on in London it misfht have seemed as if the 
world had indeed given itself a holiday, and gone thither to 
enjoy it. When the exhibition was over, many schemes were 
devised for the fnture disposition of the building. At length, 
in May of 1852, the Crystal Palace, in Hyde Park, was purchased 
l)y a private company of English gentlemen. They designed 
that this noble structure ^should rise again, greatly enhanced 
in grandeur and beauty ; that it should form a palace for the 
multitude, w^iere, to the inhabitants of London especially, should 
be afforded, in wholesome country air, amidst the beauties of 
nature, the elevating treasures of art, and the instructive mar- 
vels of science, an accessible and inexpensive substitute for the 
injuries and debasing amusements of a crowded metropolis.' 
The Crystal Palace, rising amid the natural beauties of Syden- 
ham, in Kent, within a few miles of London, has amply fulfilled 
this noble design. The palace and its grounds occupy two hun- 
dred acres. To the lover of out-door beauty, parterres filled 
wMth the richest and gayest flowers, green terraces, fountains, 
parks, lakes, and every attraction of landscape-gardening, allure 
in this fascinating spot. To the lover of art there exists within 
a w^orld of interest and delight. And yet so simple is the 
arrangement of the treasures within this mighty edifice that 
there is no confusion, — nothing inharmonious. In the fine 
arts and industrial courts and galleries, the visitor, whether a 
man of science or of literature, poet, painter, sculptor, artisan, 
or mechanic, may learn, as it were in epitome, of all that his 
fellow-man has accomplished, almost from the first dawn of 
civilization down to the present moment. In the great nave, 
sixteen hundred and eight feet in length, is beheld a glorious 
vista of fountains and foliage, flowers and statuary. On either 
side tiers of pendant baskets, filled with graceful vines and 
richest bloom, perfume the air with delicious fragrance. The 
ear is regaled with the singing of birds, the playing of the grand 
organ, or the music of the orchestra, or, if these are hushed, 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 607 

with the refreshing sound of the fountains. Prominent in the 
foreground of the picture rises the transparent fountain of glass, 
which, glittering with all the colors of the rainbow, and tower- 
ing from a solid base up to a point, pours its unceasing streams 
upon the crystal basin below. In this sheet of water tioat the 
gigantic leaves of the Victoria llegia. In the basins of other 
fountains arc to be found rare and curious aquatic plants, water- 
lilies, gold-fish, and in some basins all the curiosities of the 
aquarium. Beds or borders ranging on either side of the nave, 
in front of the various courts, contain the rich botanical treasures 
of the palace. In these groves may be found the trees and 
shrubs and plants of almost every clime. Their waving foliage 
forms a pleasing background to the numerous specimens of 
statuary, which, singly or in sculptured groups, adorn the whole 
extent of this magnificent nave. And over all, heightening 
immeasurably the eticct of this scene of beauty, stretches the 
arched roof, with its delicate aerial tint, spanning the whole as 
if it were with a vault of opal. Thus stands the (Jr}-stal Palace, 
an enduring monument of a new and wonderful architecture, a 
permanent palace of education and art for the use of mankind, 
and an ample fulfilment of the noblest designs of its founda- 
tion." 



608 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



CHAPTEE XLVIII. 

THE TURKO-RUSSIAN WAR. 

THE RELATIVE MILITARY STRENGTH OF THE TWO POWERS AT THE COMMENCEMENT 
OF THE WAR — PROGRESS IN THE FIELD — THE CONTEST -^ FALL OF TURKEY. 

1. It is no slight task to write or compile a consecutive 
history of the great Turko-Russian war of 1877-8. The 
sources of information are ample, but equally as conflicting, 
and much that has found its way into print is unreliable. We 
must content ourselves with tracing briefly the diplomatic 
struggles which preceded the war, or the causes producing 
the Avar, the war itself, and the diplomatic contest which fol- 
lowed the treaty of San Stefano. Thus we have our subject 
divided into three parts. First, then, let us glance at diplo- 
matic measures previous to the war, and see if, in our observa- 
tions, we may not happen on the immediate causes of the 
appeal to arms. This Eastern question is a very old one, 
and, although old as European nations, has not slept sufiiciently 
long at any one time to have been forgotten by a single 
generation. The English, French, German, and Prussian 
statesmen have found their greatest abilities most heavily 
taxed when grappling with the designs of Russia. The atti- 
tude of this Eastern question is ever changing, and it is this 
constant changing which has rendered the problem so difiicult 
and so much of a puzzle to the popular mind. What is of the 
greatest importance this week sinks into utter significance next, 
and thus the scene is ever changing and repeating. But it is 
these varying phases which have led to every crisis, and to everj^ 
war in which the armies of Russia have fought ; and it was this 
peculiar nature of the case which led to the desperate war of 
1877-8, which has prostrated Turkey at the proud feet of 
Russia, and necessitated a reconstruction of those provinces 
of the Balkan peninsula recently in some measure dependent 
upon the Ottoman government. By glancing at the most promi- 
nent phases of the Eastern question, ^ve may easily discern the 
ground of disputes between the two late contending powers, 
and understand what are the " English interests " touching the 
populations which inhabit the countries extending from the 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



609 



southern frontiers of Austria and Russia to the northern fron- 
tier of Greece. 

2. The pliasc of the question which agitated the powers at 
the close of 1875 was to deal with the rebellion in Bosnia and 




TIU; OEAND DUKE ALEXANDEJt AI,EXAM)HO»lTCU, BEmAFPAKEM- TO THE JUKOME OF lllSSIA. 

the Herzegovina. The troubles in the latter had their origin in 
the corrupt administration of the in-(>\'inces. As we arc well 
aware, the great powers of Europe dealt with it hy merely 
giving advice, l)ut carefully avoiding action. The rebellion, 
however, only increased, and received strong e:icouragement 



610 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



from the Slave populations of Austria, Servia, and Mon- 
tenegro. At last the governments of Germany, Russia, and 
Austria-Hungary decided that a bolder course- of action was 
imperative, and in May, 1876, they drew up the Berlin memo- 
randum, with the object, as the document declares, "to support 
their diplomatic action by the sanction of an agreement with 
a view to such efficacious measures as might be demanded, in 
the interests of general peace, to check the evil and prevent its 
development." On the 15th of May the governments of France 
and Italy signified their approval or acquiescence ; l)ut the 
ofovernment of Great Britain refused. At this time the foreign 
minister of Italy openly avowed his regret at the action of 
England, and stated that he considered " united action between 
all the powers was the surest means of securing peace ; and 
that, in associating themselves with the policy of the three 
imperial cabinets in the present instance, the Western Powers 
would be in a better position to exercise an influence over sub- 
sequent proceedings should the measure now proposed fail to 
realize the hoped-for pacification. These were the motives 
wdiich had determined the Italian government to accept the new 
proposals." Such w^as the gentle manner in wdiich Italy remon- 
strated with England, wdiile at the same time the foreign min- 
ister of France expressed to England's representative at Paris 
''his surprise and regret, and spoke at length, and in a pecu- 
liarly earnest language of the result w'hich he dreaded if, by 
the non-consent of all the powers, an armistice became impos- 
sible, and thus the present struggle were kept np. He im- 
plored her majesty's government to reconsider their decision. 
He trusted that they would at least consent to recommend an 
armistice, however short, in order that an attempt might be 
made to find some ground for the establishment of a common 
concert between the six powers ; and he declared that, for his 
part, he could but consider that, if England stood aloof at this 
momentous crisis, it would be a public calamity for Europe." 
But England yielded not, and for good reasons. But this was 
])y no means all the pressure brought to bear against the gov- 
ernment of England. Prince Bismarck said "he would willingly 
entertain modifications or improvements which the English 
government might propose ; but he greatly regretted that her 
majesty's goverunient had not been able to give a general 
support to the principle of the plan submitted Jjy the northern 
powers, and agreed to by France and Italy, and had felt obliged to 
withdraw from the cordial understanding so happily established 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



611 



l)etwecu the six great powers in regard to the pacilieatiou of 
the Herzegovina/' On the other hand, Prince Gortchakow, 
of linssia, " deeply regretted the resohition taken by the London 
cabinet ; "' and 
Count Andras- 
sy, of Austria, 
ollcrcd to de- 
lay the presen- 
tation to the 
Porte of the 
Berlin propo- 
sitions, in the 
hope that the 
Ensflish c:oy- 
ernnient might 
s t i 11 be i n- 
duccd to give 
its coopera- 
tion. But stJU 
England re- 
mained fn-m, 
and thus broke 
up the concert- 
ed action of 
the powers. 

3. The Porte 
was overjoyed 
at England's 
attitude, and 

became more than ever determined to disregai'd the advice of" 
the powers, no longer mianimous. John W. Probyn, in an al)le 
article on the Eastern Question, seems to find cause, though 
not in our estimation justiiial)le, for complaint against England. 
Pie says,^ "A policy advocated by Austria, whose neighboring 
Slave populations neeessarily and naturally sympathized with 
the Slaves of Bosnia and the Herzegovina, Avas assuredly one 
that should have commanded the assent of English statesmen. 
They would have done well to retlect that if Austrian statesmen 
(dreading that the continuation of the revolt against the Porte 
would lead Servia and •Montenegro to aid the insurgents) 
thought it time ' to supplement their diplomatic action by the 




I'lUXCE CHARLES. OF ROUMAXIA. 



'Compiled from sketch in " British Quarteriy Review," and IVoiu articles in Loudon 
' News " and " Times." 



612 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

sanction of an agreement with a view to such efficacious meas- 
ures as might be demanded in the interests of general peace to 
check the evil and prevent its development,' England would 
have done well to agree to those 'efficacious measures.' It is 
difficult to see what danger Great Britain could have run by- 
assenting to a policy agreed to by Austria. It was by the adop- 
tion of 'efficacious measures,' and not liy a refusal to join in them, 
that Lord Palmcrston put an end to misrule, strife, and mas- 
sacre in the Lebanon, in 1860. He did not hesitate to join 
France in coercing Turkey, and obliging her, by means of a 
French army and an English fleet, to punish her oflending 
officers. Order thus being restored by the arms of the Western 
powers, they proceeded, in concert with the other powers and 
Turkey, to establish a government in the Lebanon which has 
since ruled fairly Avell its various races and creeds. But this 
remarkable precedent was of no account apparently in the 
counsels of Lord Bcaconfield's cabinet, not even when Austria 
herself had sanctioned an agreement with a view to ' efficacious 
measures.' Let those who desired the maintenance of the in- 
dependence and integrity of the Ottoman empire, as settled by 
the treaty of 1856, ask themselves whether the results of Eng- 
land's 'agreeing to the ' efficacious measures' implied in the Ber- 
lin memorandum could possibly have been as disastrous to the 
P<n-tc as have been the results of that policy of refusal to join 
in 'efficacious measures' so persistently pursued by the English 
cabinet. The enemies of Turkey may indeed congratulate 
themselves that no ' efficacious measures ' were taken by the 
powers of Europe to put an end to misrule and rebellion in 
Bosnia and the Herzegovina ; but the avowed friends and sup- 
porters of the Ottoman government have assuredly not the same 
cause for rejoicing in this year of grace 1878." 

4. The rejection of the Berlin memorandum was soon fol- 
lowed by Servia and Montenegro declaring war against the 
Porte. Thus the conflagration spread, and the danger to the 
peace of Europe was thereby sensibly increased. The mas- 
sacres in Bulgaria, which occurred in May, 1876, turned the 
tide of feeling throughout Europe strongly aga^inst Turkey. 
After ]Mr. Baring's carefully prepared official report upon these 
massacres, Lord Derby wrote in September, 1876, his famous 
despatch on the subject to the Porte. In it the foreign secre- 
tary of England directed her amliassador at Constantinople to 
demand a formal audience with the sultan, to communicate the 
result of Mr. Baring's inquiries into the Bulgarian atrocities, and, 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 613 

in the name of the queen, call for reparation, justice, and the 
punishment of those who had perpetrated them, mentioning 
especially Chefket Pasha. He had previously made him- 
self conspicuous by treacherously ; attacking and massacring 
a large body of refugees at Possovo, in the Herzegovina, who 
were returning to their homes, confiding in the promises of the 
Turkish government. His personal share in the. massacres is 
described in Mr. Baring's report as " abominable, as there w^as 
not a seml)lance of revolt. The inhabitants were perfectly 
peaceable, and the attack on them was as cruel and wanton a 
deed as could well have been committed." The Porte was, of 
course, profuse in promises that justice should be done. This 
Turkish justice took the form of leaving Chefket Pasha un- 
punished, and ultimately giving him high command in Bulgaria. 
It is difficult to conceive a grosser insult than was thus olicrcd 
by the Ottoman government to that of England. The latter 
demanded the punishment of this official criminal ; the Porte 
replied by promoting him. Very different was the justice which 
Lord Palmerston, in 1860, compelled the Turkish government 
to mete out to its officials Avho had been concerned in the 
Lebanon massacres. Those criminals were duly shot. 

5. Montenegro prosecuted successfully, in 1870, her war 
with Turkey. Servia was, on the contrary, defeated, despite 
considerable aid given to her by Russian volunteers. This latter 
principality was saved from conquest by the Turks through the in- 
terposition of England, and the ultimatum addressed to the Porte 
by Russia. In the end of September Russia made a proposal 
to England that Bosnia should be occupied by Austrian troops, 
and Bulgaria by Russian, while the fleets of the combined 
powers of Europe took possession of the Bosphorus. Such a 
demonstration the cabinet of St. Petersburg believed would 
bring the Porte to terms, but the English government protested 
against the proposal. Russia then withdrew that portion of her 
scheme relating to the military occupation, and urged that the 
fleets of the ])owers should all go up to Constantinople, with a 
view of showing that Europe Avas in earnest. This proposal 
was backed up l)y Austria first, and then by the other powers. 
But this proposition also was negatived by the English govern- 
ment. Then foUoAved the conference at Constantinople. Russia 
produced her programme. Exception Avas taken to it, upon 
Avhich it Avas AvithdraAvn, and England stated her i)lan. It, too, 
Avas reduced and modified, until an "irreducible minimum" Avas 
at length pressed upon the Turkish government. Lord Sails- 



GU 



HISTORY or DOMINION OF CANADA, 



bury "warned the Porte that the alternative Avas a war which 
would put in peril "the very existence of the Turkish Empire ;" 
and he added, "The responsibility will rest solely with the sul- 
tan and his advisers." Heedless of such warnings, the Porte 

first put out a 
bran-new con- 
stitution (the 
hopelessness 
of Avhich no 
one has ex- 
posed more 
vig'or o u sly 
than Lord 
Salisbury him- 
self), and then, 
with an infat- 
uation that has 
scarcely a par- 
allel in recent 
times, rejected 
the proposals 
of the confer- 
ence. Before 
the month of 
April, 1877, 
closed, the jus- 
tice of Lord 
S a 1 i s 1j u r y's 
warnings Avere 
verified. Rus- 
sia, unable to 
obtain anything by negotiations, appealed to arms. Turkey 
thus exposed herself to the tremendous risk of a single- 
handed contest with her formidaljle iiciii'hbor. After a few 
months of gallant fighting, she now finds, to her cost, that she 
has but put in peril "her very existence." Thus it was that the 
Eastern question entered in April, 1877, upon this new and 
critical phase of a war between Russia and Turkey alone. 
Throughout the precedmg negotiations, extending from the 
autumn of 1875 to the spring of 1877, the cabinet of St. Peter- 
burg had either agreed to, or proposed, various plans by which 
"efficacious measures " were to be taken ])y united Europe in 
order to compel Turkey to introduce substantial reforms, at 




THE MAKQUIS OF SALISBURY, ENGLAND. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 015 

first in Bosnia and the Herzegovina, and afterwards in Bulgaria. 
To all such proposals the English government refused its con- 
sent. Turkey at the same time rejected, systematically, the 
suggestions of the European powers, both before the conference 
at Constantinople, and in the conference itself. It cannot be 
doubted that this blind resistance of the Porte was not a little 
due to the attitude taken up by the English cabinet. The 
Turkish government saw England diifering on various occasions 
from the other powers, while always refusing to unite with them 
in taking "eiiicacious measures " against Ottoman misrule, such 
as Lord Palmerston's government so wisely joined in when dis- 
turbances and massacre desolated the Lebanon in 1860. Tur- 
key, therefore, counted upon this disunion, and steadily refused 
the advice of Europe. The Porte was all the more obstinate in 
her resistance, because her avowed supporters in England ap- 
plauded this infatuated policy, while their words, both spoken 
and written (if they had any meaning at all), led to the con- 
clusion that Turkey might, at any rate in the last resort, count 
upon England's material support. Thus these self-constituted 
advisers of the Ottoman government lured it on to the destruc- 
tion of its military power, and its utter prostration at the feet 
of Ivussia. To those who advocated the polic}' of united 
Europe, including England, actually taking "efficacious meas- 
ures " against Turkish misrule in Bosnia and the Herzegovina, 
and later on in Bul^-aria, it inav now indeed be said that the 
advocates of such a policy would thereby have preserved, at 
least to some extent, the continuation of Turkish rule. But 
surely the answer is obvious, that it would have been Aviser by 
the concerted action of all Europe to have coerced Turkey, to 
have circumscribed her authority, and dictated a proper use of 
it, as in the case of the Lebanon, rather than to have left Russia 
alone to coerce Turkey. Every dictate of a wise and prudent 
policy was in favor of such coercion coming from united 
Euroi)e, so that both its action and its results might have been 
directed by all the European powders. As it is, a drifting and 
uncertain policy has allowed Kussia alone to assume the part of 
the chastiser of Turkey's misrule, and the champion of her op- 
pressed subjects. The consequence is, that an inordinately 
l)rep()nderating influence has been acquired by Kussia, while 
Turkey has been almost destroyed. But, since the conclusion 
of the war, England has so far counteracted the influence of 
Russia as to make it a question of grave uncertainty to-day 



G16 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



whether or not the latter will yield her claim in a largo degree, 
or risk a war with the English. 

6. But let us pause in our observations of diplomacy to 
glance at the field of battle ; to record the principal military 
operations in the great war. The war itself may be conveniently 
divided into four periods. The first comprises the gathering 
together of the Russian armies in Europe and xVsia, their ad- 
vance to the Danulje and into Armenia, the easy successes of 
the invaders in their operations until June and July, and the 
sudden reverses which befell their arms, on cither theatre, at 
Zewin and Plevna. The second comprises the eventful time 

Avhon the issue 
of the struggle, 
and all that it 
involved, hung 
in doubtful sus- 
pense for sev- 
eral weeks, and 
embraces the 
ofl'ensive move- 
ments of the 
Turks against 
the Shipka 
Pass, and on 
the Lom and 
the Jantra,and 
the gTcat Rus- 
sian defeat of 
the 11th of 
Sept e mber. 
The third opens 
with the turn 
in afiai re caused 
by the gigantic 
efforts of Rus- 
sia and by the 
declining pow- 
erof the Turks ; 

it contains the second campaign in Armenia, the decisive victory 
of Aliijagh Dagh, the fall of Kars, and the march on Erzeroum ; 
and it terminates with the crowning^ triumph of the surrender of 
Plevna and its l^rave defenders. The fourth period is little 
known as yet, but it abounds in stirring and dramatic scenes ; 




SAVFET PASHA, TUKKEY. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. G17 

the advance of the Russians across the Balkans, despite the 
tempests and frosts of winter ; the rising of Servia and the fall 
of Sophia ; the last struggles of Suleiman Pasha ; the sudden 
collapse of the defence of the Turks after their crushing defeat 
in the Shipka Pass ; and, finally, the unresisted march of the 
conquerors from Adrianople to the shores of the Bosphorus, 
events Avliich, whatever their other results, have probably ellaced 
forever the rule of the Ottoman caste in Eastern Europe. 

7. If we consider it in its broader aspects, the war forms 
one of those grand eras occasionally seen in the world's history. 
It marks another of the decisive triumphs of the race of Japhcth 
over that of Shem ; it is another act in the eventful drama in 
\yhich the once terrible hordes of Asia have been gradually 
forced to yield their conquests, and to bow to the superior power 
of Europe. Henceforward, we trust the down-trodden Slave, 
will know what freedom and peace mean, from the banks of 
the Danube to those of the Ilebrus ; and the time, we believe, 
is not far distant when the Greek will regain his lost heritage ; 
when the Crescent will disappear forever from Byzantium and 
its renowned temples ; when Greek life and progress will again 
animate the shores of the disenthralled Euxine. We cannot, 
however, dwell on these topics, for our purpose is to survey 
only the actual events and the course of the contest, and to give 
our readers a short account of it. From this point of view the 
struggle is, perhaps, of less exciting and profound interest than 
some of the great campaigns of this century, and is of less value 
to the military student. It contains, indeed, hero and there, 
instances of brilliant daring and thoughtful generalship ; and it 
is characterized throughout by the heroic courage, the endurance, 
and the tenacious energy which have often distinguished wars 
of the kmd. But, viewed as a whole, it has not been signalized 
b}^ master-strokes of the art of "war ; it can show no Austerlitz, 
Jena, or Sedan ; and it abounds in examples of strategic failure, 
of great and striking military errors, and of combinations with- 
out skill or forethought. Yet, even if we regard it from this 
side only, the contest deserves attention and study, for military 
science can draw lessons as well from ill-directed and ill-con- 
ceived projects as from the operations of the greatest command- 
ers ; and, in addition, the campaign abounds in episodes of 
peculiar interest, and in passages of arms that we shall not 
easily forget. 

8. It is unnecessary for us to dwell at length on the circum- 
stances that preceded the war. If we recollect that for many 



618 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

ages the Slavonic nations around the Danube were, in different 
degrees, under Turkish rule ; that they have been adv^aneing in 
power and wealth while their tyrants have been a declinin<»- 
caste ; and, tinall}^ that Russia necessarily is at once the pro- 
tector of these communities and the natural foe of their Moslem 
oppressors, — it is impossible not to sec that this state of things 
inevitably led to a tremendous conflict. It is more important 
for us to note the attitude with respect to the crisis of the two 
powers which, on this groat occasion, might have shaped the 
destiny of this part of Europe. "We cannot doubt that more or 
less ambition was intermingled with purer motives in the con- 
duct of Russia in 1875-G, and she Avill be condemned by history 
if her present triumph is sullied by intrigue or the lust of con- 
quest. On the other hand, it M'as, no doubt, difficult for Eng- 
land to recede on a sudden from what had been her traditional 
policy, and to abandon her support of the Turk ; and she is per- 
fectly within her rights to see that her interests shall receive no 
injury at the present juncture. But we must not the less ex- 
press our regret that England and Russia did not cooperate in 
the great deliverance which seems now accomplished ; and we 
are firmly convinced that this very alliance, negotiated wisely, 
and under just conditions, would not only perhaps have assured 
the freedom of European Turkey without war, but would have 
been the best means of maintaining the rights Ave seek to uphold 
in this part of the continent. As events have turned out, Avhat- 
cver her motives, Russia has become the liberator of the Sla- 
vonic race, from the Carpathians to the verge of the Bosphorus, 
while the government of England, we say it with shame, has done 
nothing to promote this object, nay, has crossed and opposed it 
in every way ; the result being that England has had no share 
in one of the grandest of human achievements. 

9. A few words must now be said on the resources and the 
military position of the belligerent powers when the contest 
began. The armies of Russia were, beyond question, incompar- 
ably superior to those of the Turks, in numbers, efficiency, and 
worth in the field ; and, notwithstanding all that has been said to 
the contrar3% this was demonstrated in the course of the struggle. 
The czar disposed of prol)al)ly six hundred thousand warriors ; 
and though the organization of this powerful force was, in some 
respects, very far from perfect, it was infinitely better than that 
of their enemies, comparatively useless in the open field, from 
a deficiency in most of the requirements of war. On the other 
hand, the Turks had contrived to assemble more numerous and 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. G19 

even better-appointed arra3's than generally had been supposed 
in Europe. The collective strength of their armies perhaps 
was from three hundred thousand to four hundred thousand 
men ; and though these levies had in a ""reat dcijree the charac- 
ter of the hordes of the East, they had one advantage over their 
disciplined foes, — a superiority in arms, — which, in defensive 
warfare, made them adversaries of the most formidable kind. 
There was less disparity, therefore, in the hostile forces than 
many observers believed beforehand, and the inferiority of the 
Turks was to some extent compensated by the conditions of the 
strife. As the Kussians of course would assume the offensive, 
they would necessarily encounter many ol)stacles of a natural 
and artiticial kind : in Asia the mountain chains of Armenia 
anxl the strong places that cover Erzeroum ; in Europe, the 
Danube, the Bulgarian fortresses, the Balkans, and the immense 
distances between the Pruth and the plains of lioumelia ; and 
these circumstances concurred to favor a l)elligcrent on the de- 
fensive in the hio'hest deo'rce. Add to this that the Turks had 
the great advantage of the uncontrolled command of the sea, — 
that is, possessed the means of throwing their forces on almost 
every point of the theatre of war with comparative rapidity and 
with little risk, — and we shall understand how, for a f(nv 
months at least, the contending powers were not wholly un- 
matched. For the rest, the Russian commanders were not, as 
a general rule, superior men ; and though, with some excep- 
tions, they were more versed in war than the nominees of the 
corrupt Nurgish court, many among them, when hostilities be- 
gan, seem to have had a doubt as to what was to be done, and 
were either over-contidcnt or timid in the extreme. 

10. War was proclaimed by Russia in April of last ,year 
(1877), and Asia Minor became the first scene of the conflict. 
On this theatre the Grand Duke Michael had assembled an 
army which has been described as from eighty thousand to one 
hundred and twenty thousand strong, and which was certainly 
superior to the enemy in its front. This force, conunanded by 
Loris Mclikofl", marched rapidly across the Turkish frontier, 
and, dividing itself into three l)odies, made on the rigiit for 
Batoum, on the Black Sea, in the centre for the great fortress 
of Kars, and on the left for the line of the Aras. The column 
on the right, when it approached Batoum, received severe 
checks from the garrison of the place, and became isolated from 
the rest of the army ; but on every other point of their broad 
advance the Russians at first were completely successful. Tur- 



G20 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



gtikassoft', to the left, passed the plains of Ararat, and, taking 
possession of Bayazid, reached the head-waters of the Eastern 
Euphrates ; and Melikofi", Avith the main column, had in a fcAV 
days forced the approaches to Kars, had surrounded the fortress 
with his light horsemen, and had even despatched some troops 




THE GRAND DUKE MICHAEL, KUSSIAJf COJIMANDER-IN-CIIIEF IN ASIA MINOR. 

l)eyond it. The frontier of Armenia was thus occupied ; and 
though the ranges and the defiles that impede the march of an 
enemy arc difficult in the extreme, a daring oflensive might, at 
this moment, have assured the Russians decisive success. The 
Turks, in fact, always slow and unready, had been comi)letely 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 621 

taken by surprise, and, though orders had been given to defend 
the province, Armenia was really all but defenceless. It is now 
known that Mukhtar, the Turkish commander, had a force of 
only a few thousand levies when Mclikofl' first appeared before 
Kars ; and had the llussian geileral pressed boldly forwards, he 
might probably have made his way to the capital, and iiuished 
the campaign almost at one blow. Melikoff, however, contented 
himself with beginning operations to invest Kars, and soon af- 
terwards he directed a part of his forces to attack Ardahan, a sec- 
ondary fortress at a distance on his right. This delay may have 
changed the course of events ; at least it gave the Turks a 
favorable chance, which their leader knew how to make use of. 
Having hastily reinforced the garrison of Kars, INIukhtar fell 
back with his scanty force to the position of the Soganlook 
Pass, — a mountain detile that covers Erzeroum, — and once 
there he made great efforts to increase and to form his imper- 
illed army. His exertions were seconded by the government 
at home, which sent him a large detachment by sea ; recruits 
also flocked into his camp from the Moslem population of the 
surrounding country ; and before long he was at the head of a 
force which, though of a motley kind, was not contemptible as 
regards mere numbers. 

11. Simultaneously with the campaign in Asia, the Eussians 
began to advance in Europe. For months before war had l)een 
declared, the hosts of the czar had been drawing together from 
the interior to the banks of the Pruth, and the Grand Duke 
Nicholas was now at the head of an army which had a numer- 
ical strength of full}^ three hundred thousand men. A large 
part of this force, however, was left in the rear to defend the 
coasts of Southern Russia from the Turkish fleets. Very great 
deductions, too, must be made from what were merely returns 
on paper, and probably not more than one hundred and eighty 
thousand men crossed the frontier of the empire in the first in- 
stance. A variety of circumstances caused the march of the 
invaders to be extremely slow : bad weather injured the Rou- 
manian highways ; large tracts of the country were turned into 
swamps impracticable but at a few places ; the railway commu- 
nication was very defective ; and the affluents of the Danube, 
largely swollen with floods, were difficult barriers for troops to 
get over. Complaints, too, were made that the Russian ar- 
rangements were cumbrous, and showed a Avant of system ; and 
though we ought not to lay too much stress on them there can 
be little doubt that the Russian advance was not, like that of a 



622 



HISTORY OF DOMIXIOX OF CANADA, 



modern German army, marked b}' that care of administrative 
detail "svliich is a secret of celerity in war. In addition to these 
there Avas another cause that made the operations of the Rus- 
sians tardy. It was necessar}'- that the}' should cross the Dan- 




UJi.NJiKAL LUXasS-ilJb;LlK.Oi'F. 



ube, a Avater-way of innnense l)readth, in places s^uarded hy 
powerful fortresses, and occupied ])y a hostile flotilhi ; and time 
was required to overcome these o])stacles, aud to make the pas- 
sage of the river possible. 'I'he Russian commanders devoted 
weeks to makiug preparations for this great object, to con- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 623 

stnicting pontoons, throwing up batteries, and gathering to- 
gether boats and small craft ; and though events showed that 
they were too circumspect we can scarcely blame them for 
excess of caution. At the same time there is no denying that 
the slowness of the invaders' advance gave the Turks an occa- 
sion they might have made use of. More than eight weeks 
passed from the declaration of war before the llussian army 
was upon the Danube ; and during this interval an active enemy 
might have seriously impeded the columns on their march, by 
milking raids into the lloumanian plains and by multiplying 
obstacles to the passage of troops. If the Turks, too, could 
not have accomplished this, they might at least have largely 
increased the flotilla with which they held the line of the Dan- 
ube ; they might have greatly strengthened the Bulgarian 
strongholds ; and, above all, they could have removed to the 
north of the Balkans a part of the numerous forces which they 
had in Albania and Montenegro. The Turks, howevei", did 
none of these things, or did them in an imperfect fashion. The 
march of the Russians was not molested ; the Ottoman flotilla 
received no additions, and, was, indeed, parah'zed l)y the fear 
of torpedoes ; and though something was done to improve the 
works of Rustchuk, Silistria, and other places, scarcely a Turk- 
ish soldier Avas desi3atched to the aid of the army formed in the 
Bulgarian plains. 

12. AVe dwell on these points, for, in our judgment, sufii- 
cient attention has not been given to them. If, as professional 
experts say, the strategy of the liussians in this part of the war 
was halting, timid, and wasteful of time, that of the Turks was 
far more characterized by sluggishness, feebleness, and want 
of purpose. By the middle of June the preparations to cross 
the Danulie seem to have l)een nearly complete, but, as the 
river was still big with flood, a further delay of some days was 
needed. At this time the invading army w^as in occupation 
of the Roumanian bank of the river for nearly two hundred 
miles ; but it was formed for the most part into tAvo masses, — 
one to the left, holding the country between Galatz, Bucharest, 
and Kalarash, the other holding the tracts extending from 
Giurgevo to the banks of the Vede, — and it was already evi- 
dent that it had become impossible for the Turks seriously to 
dispute the passage. The first crossing took place at Galatz, 
and was executed not without skill and judgment. A feint 
was made to bridge the stream near Ibraila, by bringing 
materials for pontoons together, and this seems to have de- 



G24 niSTORY OF dominion of CANADA, 

ceived the Turks, who sent a detachment near the spot, at 
Matchin. On the morning, however, of the 22d of June, a 
few hundred Russians put otf in boats from the shore at Galatz 
upon the Danube, and, successive reinforcements coming to 
their aid, a footing was made at last on the Bulgarian bank, 
notwithstanding a fierce and gallant resistance. Bridges w^ere 
thrown across at Galatz and Ibraila, and in a few days a whole 
Kussian corps was in full march through the Dobrudscha 
waste, leaving the Danube completely in its powder in the rear. 
The second crossing was ctfected on the 27th of June, at a 
point much higher up the river, and it presented features of a 
similar kind, though it was on a larger scale, and more sternly 
contested. As in the preceding instance, preparations were 
feigned to pass near Nicopolis and other points, but Simnitza 
w^as the real place selected ; and a Russian detachment issuing 
from this spot was launched in rafts and barges across the 
river. The movement was sustained by a heavy fire of bat- 
teries from the Roumanian bank, and by the embarkation of 
troops in succession, but it w^as perceived at once by a Turkish 
detachment, and it was encountered with the most determined 
courage. At last, however, after several hundreds of the as- 
sailants had been drowned and had fallen, the Russians suc- 
ceeded in forcing the passage, and Sistova, on the Bulgarian 
shore, was occupied. The Danube was afterwards easily 
bridged, the defenders having given way at all points, and 
before a week was over the invading army was spreading on all 
sides into Bulgarian territory. 

13. This passage of the Danube, so rapid and easy, was 
ominous of the fate of the Ottoman power, and was the cause 
of excitement and wonder in Europe. It was certainly a brill- 
iant military feat, designed with care and carried out ably ; but 
it w^as executed under conditions of a kind which lessen our 
surprise at its complete success. As we have seen, the Turks 
made scarcely an attempt to prevent or retard the march of 
the enemy, or even to interfere with his preparations to cross ; 
the flotilla, from which they had hoped so much, did simply 
nothing to check the Russians ; and, though their fortresses 
barred some points of passage, they were made all but useless, 
not being supported by armies in the field to manoeuvre be- 
tween them. The Turks, in foct, had contented themselves 
with stationing detachments on the Bulgarian shore at the 
places where they expected the crossing ; and as the invader 
approached the Danube they drew the mass of their movable 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



62^ 



forces — not less, perhaps, than one hundred and forty thousand 
men — into their strongholds, where they remained cooped up. 
In these circumstances the Russians were able to effect the 
passage almost as they pleased ; the weak cordons of troops 







EDHEM Pi^SIIA, GKAND VIZIEU OP TURKEY. 



that lay in their front were swept away at the first real pressure, 
and it was a matter of certainty that the Bulgarian bank would 
be readily mastered, and with little loss. In a military point 
of view the line of the Danube was, in short, given up by the 
Turks at once ; their show of defending it was worse than idle ; 



626 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

and though the elaborate arrangements of the Russian com- 
manders to secure the crossing show forethought and sense, the 
enterprise itself was not wonderful. As for their enemy, the 
inability of the Turks to avail themselves of this great barrier, 
by the manoeuvres usual in instances of the kind, proves how 
ignorant they were of the art of war, and how incapable were 
their troops in the field, 

14. The Russian army had scarcely obtained a hold on the 
southern bank of the Danube when intellio'ence arrived that 
successive disasters had befallen the cause of the czar in Asia. 
Ardahan having fallen after the middle of May, Loris Melikoff 
had proceeded with the siege of Kars, had opened fire on the 
north-eastern part of the fortress, and had made an attempt to 
invest it closely. The strength and the extent of the place, 
however, were too great for the force of the enemy, and the 
works of the siege, it has been asserted, were ill designed, and 
by no means efficient. After delaying for several weeks on 
the spot the Russian commander resolved to turn the siege 
into a mere blockade ; and, leaving some troops to observe the 
garrison, made ready to march, -with the rest of his army, 
against Muktar Pasha, for some time safe, as we have seen, in 
the Soganlook defiles. By this time the corps of Turgakassoff 
had advanced far on the way to Erzeroum ; it was drawing near 
the valley of the Aras, and it would soon be in a position to 
threaten the flank of Muktar, and perhaps even to turn it. 
Melikoff, accordingly, seems to have planned a com]jined attack 
on the Turkish army by his own and Turgakassolfs forces ; and 
if, as he supposed, success was certain, he anticipated that the 
Soganlook would be forced, that he would advance rapidly with 
the united columns, and that he would be ere long at the gates 
of the capital. The project was bold, and even ingenious; but 
it was ill-adapted to existing facts, and it was executed without 
skill or judgment. 

15. By this time Mukhtar had collected and entrenched in 
the Soganlook Passes an army at least thirty thousand strong, 
and formidable in a defensive position. The two Russian 
generals, though nearing each other, were separated by moun- 
tain chains and defiles, and therefore Melikoff, to ensure suc- 
cess, ought to have had a force sufficient to defeat Mukhtar 
and ought to have made his junction with his colleague certain. 
That general, however, broke up from Kars with forces which, 
it is said, were not more than twenty thousand men, and he 
was never able really to combine his movements Avith those of 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. G27 

his lieutenant on the left. The result was a series of Russian 
defeats, and bad generalship was made worse by faulty tactics. 
Tui-gakassofi*, advancing into the Aras valley, defeated IMukh- 
tar in an affair of outposts, but was defeated in turn on the 
22d of June ; and three days afterwards Melikoff assailed the 
main Turkish army in the Soganlook defiles, but was ntterly 
routed with enormous loss, his enemies being superior in num- 
bers, and his attack on their entrenched position being reckless 
and wild in the highest degree. This battle, called, from the 
place, Zewin, completely baffled the llussian projects. The 
question now was not of attacking Erzeroum, but of retreating 
as fast as possible ; and, in fact, the campaign was for the time 
ended. The llussian army fell back on all points ; the siege 
of Kars was raised by the middle of July; Turgakassoff 
scarcely effected his escape, and by the first of August the 
repelled invaders had retired almost to their own frontier. 

16. In spite, however, of this reverse in Asia, the Russians 
continued to advance in Europe. During the week that fol- 
lowed the 27th of June new bridges were thrown across the 
Danube, and by the first days of July not less probably than 
one hundred and thirty thousand Russians were on their way 
towards the line of the Balkans. Two causes seem to have 
induced their leaders to press forward with energy and speed, 
and to have given their movement a different character from 
that which marked their operations at first. One class of gen- 
erals in the Grand Duke's camp is said to have been convinced 
that the Turks would not venture to make a serious resistance ; 
that the campaign would be a mere showy march ; and these 
counsellors, who now appeared in the right, urged their chief 
to advance at any risk, and to carry the war beyond the Balkans, 
with little regard to military rule. Then, again, the attitude 
of the Turks themselves seemed to encourage a dashing and 
bold offensive, and even to make it the wisest strategy. As 
we have seen, even before the Danube was crossed, the Otto- 
man chiefs had withdrawn the mass of the forces into the Bul- 
garian fortresses ; they had scarcely attempted to dispute the 
passage ; they remained stationary, although their enemy was 
now encamped on Bulgarian soil. Was it not possible, there- 
fore, nay, true generalship, to advance into the heart of the 
empire, merely holding in check the hostile levies which seemed 
unable to leave their strongholds? The Russians accordingly, 
at this juncture, precipitated the invasion with almost reckless 
energy, and neglected precautions of the simplest kind very 



628 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

seldom to be neglected in war. Their general design was to 
hasten onwards, and to penetrate into the Roumelian lowlands, 
hoping doubtless to finish the war at once, yet not wholly omit- 
ting, however, to protect their base and flank from possible 
attack. With these objects a considerable force was sent to 
seize Tirnova and Selvi, and open a way to the Balkan range ; 
and, these places having been easUy occupied, a division under a 
gallant chief, Gourko, was despatched over the mountain bar- 
rier, with orders to hold one principal pass and to clear Rou- 
melia for an invading army. The march of this small but 
well-led force forms one of the most attractive episodes of the 
war, but our space forbids us to dwell upon it. Suffice it to 
say, that, after great exertions, it traversed the Balkans by 
almost unknown paths, and, advancing up the valley of the 
Tundja, not only carried the Shipka Pass, the main issue in 
this part of the range, but spread terror up to Adrianople. 
The operations of the invaders in the rear were also raarkedby 
no little visror. On their left large detachments were sent to 
observe the fortresses of Rustchuk and the course of the Lom, 
and, extending themselves towards Rasgrad and Shumla, to 
cover the flank of the Russian advance. On the right, Nicop- 
olis was besieged and stormed, in order to secure the invaders' 
base and to strengthen their hold upon the Danube ; and a 
division, not of large force however, was directed to make its 
way to Plevna, and to cover on that side the Muscovite line. 

17, These operations were completed between the first and 
the third weeks of July. The effect of them was to place the 
Russian army in a line from the Danube to the Maritza ; to 
give it a footing beyond the Balkans, with the command of the 
chief pass from Tirnova ; and to secure it a hold on the tract of 
country between the Jantra and Osma, and thence to the Tundja. 
The military position seemed brilliant in the extreme ; the in- 
vaders, with scarcely the loss of a man, had made their way 
into the heart of Roumelia ; the second great line of the defence 
of the Turks, the difficult Balkans, had been overcome ; a part 
of Bulgaria had been overrun and Avas held by the invading 
host ; and from Nicopolis to Sistova the Danube had become a 
safe avenue for the Muscovite troops. As ominous a sign, too, 
as any other perhaps, the Russians had been everywhere wel- 
comed as liberators of the Bulgarian race ; and the Bulgarian 
peasantry had, in many places, sought and obtained arms for a 
war of revenge. No wonder, then, that even in the eyes of 
experienced statesmen and trained soldiers the Ottoman power 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 629 

seemed wholly broken, esiDCcially as, up to this moment, the 
Turks had scarcely given a sign of life, and still for the most 
part kept their armies in the fortresses where they had taken 
refuge. Yet events were to show that the situation of the in- 
vaders was very far from safe, nay, that a single mischance 
might make it critical. The llussians were not in sufficient 
force to occupy firmly the great extent of territory they had 
spread themselves over ; it is probable that they had, at this 
moment, not more than one hundred and twenty thousand men 
between the Danube and their farthest advance ; and these 
numbers were not large enough to guard several points that 
invited attack. In addition to this, the left Russian flank, that 
from liutschuck to Shumla, was well protected ; but the right 
flank had scarcely any protection on a line from Nicopolis to 
the Balkans, and a successful efibrt by the enemy on that side 
might at once paralyze the invading forces, and even place them 
in serious peril. In short, daring and brilliant as it seemed, 
the strategy of the Russians had been incautious ; it assumed 
that the Turks could do scarcely anything, and thus, so to 
speak, "took liberties" with them ; and, in this state of things, 
any well-planned attack of their despised foe might have grave 
consequences. Though the Turks, too, as yet had been motion- 
less, there were indications that they were about to move on 
either side of the Russian advance ; and in that event, should 
they be once able to Ijreak in on the invader's flank, or even to 
establish a force near it, the Muscovite army, thrown far forward 
on a narrow front and with a cramped base, from the Danube 
to the Maritza valley, not to speak of a mountain range between, 
would be in a position of no little difficulty. 

18. Events were, in a few days, to show how perilous the 
situation of the invaders was, and what risks they had run from 
extreme confidence. A short time after the fall of Nicopolis, 
Osman Pasha, the Turkish commandant at Widdin, had set off 
from his camp round the fortress with an arm}' perhaps thirty- 
five thousand strong, his ol)ject being, it is believed, either to 
take part in a general movement of the Ottoman forces against 
the Russians, or to make a demonstration to relieve Nicopolis, 
of the surrender of which he had not hocn apprised. His out- 
posts had just occupied the banks of the Vedc and taken pos- 
session of the town of Plevna, a position of remarkable natm-al 
strength, lying on the right flank of the Russian advance, when 
Krudencr, one of the chief Russian generals, who, as we have 
seen, had received orders to take the place, as a strategic point 



G30 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



from which the invaders' line on that side would be covered, 
arrived on the spot to fulfil his mission. The Russian officers, 
however, elated with success, and ignorant that a large Turkish 
force was actually Avithin a few hundred yards, marched their 




OSMAN PASHA. 



troops incautiously into the streets of Plevna, without recon- 
noitring the approaches to it ; and the result was that the men 
were assailed by a well-directed fire from the mosques and the 
house-tops, and that hundreds w^ere slain in a few moments. 
Krudener seems to have returned to the attack next day, but he 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 631 

was unable to drive from his points of vantage an enemy already 
conscious of strength, and his divisions fell back defeated and 
batiled. The importance of the position of Plevna, commanding 
one flank of the entire invasion, being now evident in the Russian 
camp, the Grand Duke Nicholas hastily directed apart of one of 
his corps to leave the Lorn and to join hands with and support 
Krudener ; and he added peremptory orders that the united force 
should attack and storm Plevna, whatever the cost. This 
movement, however, required some days ; and in the mean time 
the Turkish commander, evidently also aware of the immense 
advantage to the Turkish cause of retaining Plevna, had addressed 
himself with remarkable energy to fortifying and entrenching 
the place, and making it a formidable point of defence. The 
natural features of Plevna, we have said, mark it out as a very 
strong position ; but- Osman's eflbrts, short as was the time, 
added greatly to its defensive power. The town lies behind 
a range of uplands, not easily approachable at several points, 
but everywhere conunanding the adjoining country from Oponet^z 
on the north to Kirshinc southwards, and to the east tliesc form 
a kind of salient overlooking Gravitza and Radichevo, and re- 
sembling the angle of a gigantic fortress. Availing himself of 
these characteristics of "the ground, Osman strengthened the 
heights at every place where they were most accessible to a 
hostile movement with ranges of ably-constructed earthworks ; 
he threw up redoubts along the face of the angle, especially one 
of large size near Gravitza ; and he drew up his army within 
these lines thus formed, conceahng it as much as possible from 
sight. 

19. These preparations were completed between the 20th 
and 31st of July, and they reflect the highest credit on the 
Turkish leader. By the last-named day the position of Plevna 
had assumed the aspect of a great entrenched camp, defying an 
assault at several points, atfording a front of most destructive 
fire at every spot where an attack was possible, and especially 
along the kind of bastion from the Gravitza to the Radichevo 
redoubts, and holding in its recesses and under cover a well- 
armed and confident force. The Russian commanders, it is 
said, remonstrated, when they had become aware of the task 
before them, at the notion of endeavoring to storm the place ; 
and it is indeed certain that even their combined forces were 
less numerous than those of Osman, a circumstance which con- 
demned an attempt of the kind. The Grand Duke, however, 
would brook no delay, — it is now l)elieved that he had no con- 



632 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

ccption of the real numbers of Osman's arm}-, — and, after an 
inctfectual protest, Krudcner, with Shatfosky, the chief of a 
Lorn corps, made arrangements to carry out their orders. The 
attempt took place on the 31st of July, and even from the lirst 
it was ill-planned and executed. From some miknown reason 
the Russian commanders selected the formidable eastern front, 
that of the great Gravitza and the Ivadichevo redoubts, as the 
scene of their most determined cflbrts, and for several hours 
they persistently tried to storm the entrenched camp where it 
was almost impregnable. The attacks, too, were not well con- 
ducted. Krudener, it is said, and Shaffosky disliked each other, 
and did not cordially act together ; and it has even been assert- 
ed that the attacks were made in the dense formation of the close 
column, — an almost inconceivable mistake in tactics. Under 
these conditions the defeat of the Russians almost followed as a 
matter of course, and the success of the defence was well-nigh 
assured. The Russians, advancing with devoted courage, more 
than once entered the Turkish lines, and even carried some 
outlying works ; but their movements were desultory and ill- 
combined, and their serried masses dissolved in fragments 
under the plunging fire of the hostile redoubts, especially of 
the Gravitza work, and the withering volleys of the Turkish 
infantr}-, almost hidden from sight in their well-laid trenches. 
After three or four bloody repulses like these, Krudener and 
Shaflbsky gave up the attempt, and their troops were withdrawn 
from the scene of carnage. On one point, however, of Osman's 
lines a young Russian chief, Skobeloll", made a real impression ; 
he conducted his attack with remarkable skill, and a few of his 
men even entered Plcva. But this was only a feigned attack, 
and SkobclotPs force was, of course, involved in the disaster 
that had befallen his seniors. By nightfall on the 31st the 
defeated army had fallen back to its camps of the morning, not, 
strange to say, pursued by the victors. 

20. The losses of the Russians in this fruitless effort were 
from six thousand to seven thousand men. The forces, in fact, 
which they had brought into action were, for the present, com- 
pletely shattered, and it was fortunate for them that Osman 
Pasha did not press them as they fell back from his lines. To 
the military observer the Turkish chief seems now to have had 
a great occasion to strike a heavy blow at his beaten enemy. 
He had probably thirty-three thousand men, while the Russians 
had not, we believe, twenty thousand ; these, too, sufiering from 
a heavy reverse ; and by the rules of war he ought to have had 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



)00 



a good chance of breaking to pieces the defeated army had ho 
followed up his success by pursuit. It must, however, be borne 
in mind — and this is one of the cardinal facts of the war — 
that the forces of the Turks were so badly organized that on 




GRAND DUKE CONSTAXTINE, ADMIRAL OF THE KUSSIAX FLEET. 



offensive they were weak and sluggish. Those of Osman re- 
sembled in this their comrades ; and possibly the Ottoman chief, 
though victorious, felt himself unequal to the daring movement, 
and deemed it more prudent to remain at Plevna. AVhat he 
had achieved on the 31st of July was, in truth, of the highest 



634 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

value to the cause of the Porte, and had brought a marvellous 
change in the position of aiFairs. A Turkish army, that could 
be easily increased by reinforcements from the western prov- 
inces, had now firmly established itself on the right side of the 
whole line of invasion, and paralyzed, so to speak, the Russian 
operations. So long as Osman held his ground at Plevna the 
far-extended communications/of his foes were liable to be inter- 
cepted at many points ; their position even on the Danube was 
unsafe ; and on military principles their far-spread advance into 
Roumelia, upon a contracted front, was a situation of no com- 
mon danger. This, too, would be more especially the case, if 
we recollect that the force on the Lom had been lessened to aid 
in the attack on Plevna, and that the whole strength of the 
Russian army between the Danube and Roumelia was not suf- 
ficient to guard and defend the large extent of territory it had 
hastily overrun. Strategetically, in fact, the Muscovite host had 
one of its flanks seized by a victorious foe, and drawn out as it 
was in a long thin line, with a great river behind it, and between 
hostile fortresses, and in too small numbers to hold the ground 
it occupied, it was singularly exposed to a serious attack. At 
this crisis, too, it had become manifest that an effort of the kind 
was about to be made, and that the Turks were about to assume 
the offensive. The miserable generalship of the commanders 
who had left the Danube without defence, and had permitted 
the enemy to cross the Balkans without making any serious 
resistance, had excited the wrath of the Ottoman caste ; and a 
revolution having suddenly taken place in the highest grades 
of the Turkish armies, a new set of leaders was now at their 
head. The chief of these was a German renegade, Mehemet 
Ali, — a good professional soldier, — and by his directions a 
combined movement was behii? made against the invader's forces. 
For this purpose the Turkish reserves, disseminated before in 
distant provinces, were being gathered together by the Turkish 
fleets, and placed in the hands of Suleiman Pasha ; and they 
had received orders to enter Roumelia, to expel Gourko's divi- 
sion from it, and, if practicable, to get over the Balkans. 
Mehemet Ali, at the head of the main Turkish army, was at the 
same time to advance from Shumla and to assail the Russian 
corps on the Lom ; and the force of Osman, there can be 
scarcely a doubt, was expected to cooperate from the other side. 
In truth it seems likely, as we have said before, that the march 
of that chief from Widdin was the first step in what was meant 
to be a general scheme of attack. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



)35 



21. If, then, we glance at "vvhat really was the militaiy posi- 
tion of the belligerents for a short time after the olst of Jnly, 
we shall see that the situation for the Russians was grave, and 
that the Turks had a prospect of success. The left wing of 
the Russian armies, that which had crossed the Danube at 
Galatz, was still in the Dobrudscha plains, miable to assist the 
main body, and, indeed, hundreds of miles distant. The prin- 
cipal army, which had crossed at Simnitza, was probably not 
more than one hundred and ten thousand strong after the 
calamitous defeat it had suffered at Plevna, and it was spread 
over a very long line from the Danube to the Maritza plains. 
One of its flanks was actually grasped by an enemy flushed 
with unexpected and brilliant success ; another was in a great 
measure ex- 
posed ; 




on 
every side it 
was liable to be 
assailed, and, 
if defeated, to 
be in real peril ; 
and it was too 
weak to defend 
at all points the 
number of po- 
sitions it had 
firstseizcd. On 
the other hand, 
in a military 
point of view, 
the afiliirs of 
the Turks 
seemed full of 
promise, and 
success was 
perhaps really 
within their 
power. Sulei- 
man Pasha was 
moving from 
Adrianople in 

greatly superior force to Gourko ; Mehemct Ali was preparing 
to advance from Shumla, with an army certainly of consider- 
able size, and gaining great strength from the support of the 



SULEIMAN PASHA, 
GENERAL OP THE TURKISH ARMY IN THE BALKANS. 



636 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

fortresses ; Osman stood at Plevna, with his victorious troops, 
threatening a defeated enemy from his base on the Danube to 
Tirnova, Gabrova, and the Shipka Pass. In this state of 
things were there not the elements of Turkish victory and of 
Russian disaster? Was it not at least probable that a well- 
combined effort of the Turkish commanders might break at 
some points the weak and extended line of the liussian inva- . 
sion? and, if so, was not the result possible that the Russian 
armies should be forced from the Balkans, from the Lorn, and 
from Bulgaria itself; nay, would find it difficult to recross the 
Danube? The situation, in fact, had become very critical, and 
this was perfectly understood in the grand duke's camp. Yet, 
at this difficult juncture steady resolve was not wanting in the 
Muscovite chiefs ; and, though their military measures were 
very questionable, their energy and tenacity deserve high 
praise. They still persisted in maintaining their hold on the 
territory they had already won, and so they left their forces in 
their present positions, — false strategy, no doubt, in a military 
point of view, yet not so wholly unwise perhaps as it has been: 
represented by mere soldier critics. But, on the other hand, 
the true state of affairs was at last understood, and it was 
frankly acknowledged that the Russian army in Bulgaria was 
too weak for its task. Orders were, therefore, sent for vast re- 
inforcements ; the Imperial Guard and Todleben himself were 
summoned to the European theatre of war ; and it is said that 
more than one hundred and fifty thousand men were directed 
to march across the Danube. 

22. It was, nevertheless, a momentous question, — one on 
which the issue of the campaign hung, — whether the Russians 
would be able to resist their foes until the arrival of the ex- 
pected succors. Their military position, we have seen, was a 
bad one ; they were vulnerable at a variety of points ; and for 
some weeks they would be very inferior to the force of the 
Turks in numerical strength. This last-named fact seems to 
us certain, though it is impossible to form, with any degree of 
accuracy, an arithmetical estimate of the contending armies. 
As we have said, after the 31st of July the forces of the Rus- 
sians in Bulgaria probably did not exceed one hundred and ten 
thousand men ; those of the Turks, before the Danube was 
crossed, were, perhaps, one hundred and forty thousand strong ; 
and, as large accessions were being made to them, we are dis- 
posed to think that, by the first days of August, the Porte had 
one hundred and seventy thousand men between Roumelia, the 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



637 



Balkans, and the Bulgarian fortresses. This large force, led, 
as we have seen, south of the Balkans by Suleiman Pasha, by 
Mehemet Ali from Eustchuk to Shumla, and by Osman Pasha 
in the camp of Plevna, was, no doubt, divided by great dis- 




SERDAK MAHOMET AH PASHA, COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF THE TCRKISII AEMY. 



tances ; was spread on an arc, of which its adversaries held, as 
a general rule, the chord ; and was certainly far inferior to the 
Eussian array as a military instrument, and in aggressive power. 
But it had great opportunities to strike Avith effect; it was 
elated with recent success and with hope ; and numerically it 



638 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

SO greatly exceeded the forces at present arrayed against it, 
that, we repeat, it was extremely doubtful whether they would 
be able to hold their own against it. 

23. The Turks, in fact, had a great game to play, if their 
operations were conducted with skill. Their collected force 
south of the Balkan range was probably more than tifty thou- 
sand strong, if we add to the troops which had advanced with 
Suleiman those which previously had been in Roumelia. The 
army commanded by Mehemet Ali must have numbered, if we 
consider it as a whole, from eighty thousand to one hundred 
thousand men ; for those who have reckoned it as much weaker 
than this omit, we believe, thirty thousand or forty thousand 
men under the direction of the lieutenants of that chief, and 
his position was of remarkable strength, and, besides, threatened 
the left flank of the enemy. In these circumstances, what ought 
to have been the strategy of the Turks appears self-evident. 
Their first object should, of course, have been the expulsion of 
Gourko from Roumelia, and as Suleiman had four times the 
force of that leader this was a matter of easy achievement. 
When this was accomplished, the next, and perhaps the decisive, 
operation, was not less obvious. The concentration of force, 
it is needless to say, is an elementary rule of the art of war 
when a weighty blow is to be dealt on an enemy ; and inco- 
herent and separate efforts are, in this state of things, defective 
generalship. Accordingly, when he had got rid of Gourko, it 
was the plain duty of Sulieman Pasha to cross the Balkans by 
the eastern passes, and to effect his junction with Mehemet Ali ; 
and had this been accomplished the two Ottoman leaders would 
have been at the head of a force probably twi«e as numerous as 
any that could have opposed it. This in itself would have been 
a great strategic gain; but there were special reasons why, in 
the present instance, Suleiman should have resolved to join his 
colleague. By operating in this way the Turkish armies, 
besides that they would be very large in numbers, Avould be 
assembled, covered by a chain of fortresses, on the left side of 
the entire invasion ; and from this formidable position they 
would have the means of threatening the communications of the 
Russians, and even their line of retreat. If this coucentrated 
force could now break or defeat the comparatively small Russian 
army on the Lom, it would be able to advance to the Jantra ; 
it was but a distance of a few marches from this point to the 
bridges on the Danube ; and if these were broken down by a 
successful enemy, and Osman Pasha made at the same time a 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 639 

combined and decisive attack from Plevna, the Russians would 
be in real peril. Every consideration made it imperative that 
Suleiman should unite with his chief; and no military student, 
we venture to say, had a doubt but that he would adopt this 
course. 

24. Even at the risk of repeating ourselves, we have taken 
pains today before the reader the military situation at this crisis. 
We proceed briefly to describe the etforts of the Turks in 
their oflensive movement. The initiative was taken by Suleiman 
Pasha, and for some days he gave good promise that he would 
prove an efficient and skilful leader. Having assembled per- 
haps thirty-live thousand men at Adrianople by the end of July, 
he set off from that place by the first week of August, his pur- 
pose being to join hands with a body of troops under Raouf 
Pasha, who had vainly endeavored to defend Roumelia against 
the impetuous march of Gourko. That general, after opening 
the Shipka Pass, had, we have seen, descended the Tundja 
valley, and even approached Adrianople itself, his light horse- 
men swarming on the plains that surrounded the course of the 
famous Meritza. The arrival, however, of Suleiman on the 
scene had compelled him hastily to retrace his steps, and by 
the beginning of August he was near Yeni Sagra, a Russian 
column with the Prince of Leuchtenburg being at Eski Sagra, 
at a distance to his left. Suleiman, meanwhile, had come up 
with Raouf ; and, advancing with the comluned force, he suc- 
ceeded in thrusting a hostile detachment between the divided 
Russian bodies, and bringing them to bay not fav from Kara- 
bunar. The battle was a very fierce skirmish ; the small divi- 
sion of Gourko Avas almost surrounded by the Turks in greatly 
superior numbers ; and, though it was extricated by a diversion 
made by Leuchtenburg, it was seriously beaten and compelled 
to take flight. Had Gourko or his troops been weak soldiers 
this defeat might have been utter ruin ; but he rallied his 
column with laudable energy, and, sending word to his colleague 
to retreat, he made good his escape across the Balkans. The 
first object of the Turks had been attained, the invaders had 
been driven out of Roumelia, and, though Suleiman had not 
succeeded in overwhelming his nimble enemy ; he had taught 
the Russians a severe lesson. Suleiman, leaving his colleague 
to guard Roumelia, — a measure of at least a questionable kind, 
— had marched victoriously to Eski Sagra ; but when he reached 
this place he made a pause of some days, to make his troops 
ready for fresh efforts. He has been much censured for this 



640 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



delay ; and undoubtedly, were it in bis power to make a long 
march across the Balkans at once, he ought not to have 
delayed for an instant. His army, hoAvever, though in part 
composed of some of the choicest troops of the Porte, was, like 
all Turkish armies, in want of transport and other appliances. 
Time was doubtless needed to sujiply these wants, and we are 
not disposed to be hard on its leader for a halt which ^probably 
he could not avoid. 

25. Suleiman seems to have stopped at Eski Sagra until the 
IGth or 17th of August. He employed this time in getting his 
army ready, and he seems to have reconnoitred with care three 

or even four 
of the Balkan 
passes. By the 
18th he was in 
motion again, 
his army being 
it is thought not 
less than from 
thirty thousand 
to thirty -five 
thousand men ; 
and eye-wit- 
nesses have 
said that when 
it broke up it 
was well pro- 
vided, and had 
a fine appear- 
ance. As wo 
have pointed 
out, the object 
of its chief 
should have 
been at once to 
reach Mehemet 
Ali, and thus 




KAOUP PASIIA, 
COMMANDEU OF THE TURKISH ARMY OF THE BALKANS. 



to concentrate 
cast of the Lorn, on the well-defended line from Kustchuk to 
Shumla; and the means to do this were easy and simple. A 
few marches only from Eski Sagra was the well-knowi\ Kasan 
and Selivno Pass, one of the best avenues across the Balkans. 
There were secondary passes, too, on each side, and by taking 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 641 

these routes the force of Suleiman might have crossed the 
range without meeting a foe, and efiected its junction with 
iNlehemct Ali in a week, or eiglit or nine days at most. Nor 
can there be a doubt that the commander-in-chief expected liis 
colleague in that direction ; for, after Gourko had repassed the 
Balkans, a considerable part of the main Turkish army had 
l)ecn pushed foi-ward towards Osman Bazar, and had driven 
back the Russians from that place, — a movement explicable on 
the supposition alone that iNichcmct was on the look-out for the 
columns of his lieutenant through the .Sclivno Pass. In an un- 
fortunate moment, however, for the Porte, Suleiman moved to 
the left instead of the right, and, drawing away from the Sclivno 
Pass, made for the Slii[)ka, a long way to the westward, his 
intention being to force the p-\ssagc of the Balkans by the 
last-named avenue. It is difficult to conceive a strategic move- 
ment so incomprehensible and injia'ious to the Turks. In the 
tirst place, he must have -known that the Shipka Pass was 
held by the enemy, unlike the Sclivno, which had remained 
open ; and, if so, he could only expect to succeed in passing 
after a fierce struggle, which it ought to have been 
his aim to avoid. In the second place, though the Shipka 
Pass is not a position of peculiar strength, it afl'ords the means 
of making a stern defence ; accordingly, it was not at all im- 
probable that the Turks would not be able to force it; so, if 
this hai)pencd, the great offensive movement of the Ottoman 
leaders was almost hopeless. And, in the third place, — most 
important of all, — the advance of Suleiman to the Shipka Pass 
diverted his force from Mehemet Ali, made his junction with 
him very unlikely, even if Suleiman should gain success, and 
thus tended to frustrate the one strategic project which gave 
the Turks a fair chance of defeating their foe. 

2G. Having occupied Kezanlik, and seized the village of 
Shipka, not far from the foot of the pass, Suleiman began his 
attack on the 21st of August. The position formed by the 
pass was held by a small detachment of three thousand Russians, 
and Suleiman made prodigious cffoits to ensure success by 
sheer dint of numbers. The Turks, breaking into swarms of 
skirmishers, endeavored to ascend the steep incline that leads 
to the summit of the ridge of the hills, and made good use of 
the wooded cover which, on either side, clothed the slopes of the 
pass. The attack was made by, perhaps, eight thousand men ; 
and more than once the determined assailants reached the 
entrenchments where the small Russian band s.waited their 



642 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

furious and repeated onset. The superiority of the Turks in 
numbers, however, did not avail tliem much in the narrow 
space in which they necessarily were contracted ; the attack, 
in fact, was not Avell directed, being merely against the enemy's 
front ; and, after a succession of most gallant efforts, the troops 
of the pasha were compelled to retreat. The next day was 
employed b}^ Suleiman in reconnoitring the scene of operations, 
and in marshalling his men for a second attempt, and on the 
23d he renewed the attack, more skilfully and under better 
conditions. On either side of the Shipka Pass there are small 
valleys, through which bodies of troops may penetrate into the 
mountain barrier, and even turn the position in the rear; 
and, if they should succeed in this, the line of retreat of a 
detachment holding the pass would be lost, and the defenders 
be in extreme danger. Having made himself aware of this, the 
pasha launched two columns, on either of his flanks, through 
these small passages, combining the movement with a grand 
attack in front, and probably from sixteen thousand to twenty 
thousand men were engaged in this well-designed effort. The 
defenders of the pass had, in the mean time, been reinforced 
to perhaps six thousand men ; but, though the resistance they 
made was heroic, they were on the point of being hemmed in, 
when a large body of succors arrived from Tirnova. The 
crisis of the struggle had now come ; it raged with intensit}^ for 
several hours ; and, after a number of fierce assaults, the 
Russians, who in turn had assumed the offensive, to some ex- 
tent threw back the attacks on their flanks, and cleared their 
hard-pressed and imperilled front. Nevertheless, Suleiman 
still struck for victory, and, during the next three days, he 
once more directed his dauntless soldiery against the position. 
The Turks gained a kind of partial success ; they planted 
redoubts on points in the hills overlooking the rear of the 
defenders' line ; and the fire of their batteries in places reached 
the road that leads from the pass to Tirnova. But the Russians 
erected works in turn ; they closed the entrances of the lateral de- 
files with troops, and the}^ stubbornly maintained and increased 
the strength of the main position in the Shipka Pass. The 1st of 
September saw the Turkish army still at the foot of the blood- 
stained barrier which had proved the rampart of a most noble 
defence. 

27. One of the best and bravest of the armies of the Porte 
had been shattered to pieces in this desperate contest. The 
losses of Suleiman were not less than from eight thousand to 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 643 

nine thousand men, more, probably, than a fourth of his troops, 
and the disorganization of his forces was complete. There was 
now little chance of storming the pass, and the prospect of joining 
Mehemet Ali, andof concentrating the collective armies on the 
Lom, — the one valid chance of success for the Turks, — had, it 
may be said, altogether disappeared. The cause of the Porte 
had, in truth, been shipwrecked, and the isolation and defeat 
of Suleiman's army had necessarily paralyzed and stopped 
Mehemet. We turn to notice the movements of that chief, 
which, as we have said, might have become eventful had he 
been seconded as he had reason to expect. The army of 
Mehemet was formed of three bodies : one under his own com- 
mand, then the Egyptian division, and another commanded by 
Eyoub Pasha ; and, taken together, we believe, as we have 
said, it was from eighty thousand to one hundred thou- 
sand strong. Opposed to it, along the line of the Lom, was 
the army of the heir-apparent of the czar, from fifty thou- 
sand to sixty thousand men ; but though it was so very inferior 
in force, it was a much better army than that of Mehemet, 
which was crowded with young and foreign levies. It is 
evident, therefore, that to secure for the Turks a chance of 
success for an offensive movement depended on Suleiman and 
his good troops, and from that it followed that, without his 
support, much could not be hoped for from the commander- 
in chief. This consideration is the real key to the timid 
and weak operations of Mehemet, though other causes, no 
doubt, concurred. As we have seen, that general had advanced 
a part of his forces as far as Osman Bazar, in the hope that 
Suleiman would march and join it ; but when this hope van- 
ished he fell back 1)y degrees, and, for a time, rested within 
the line of his fortresses. He moved forward, however, in a, 
few daj's again, and had a successful combat with a Russian 
division placed about midway on the course of the Lom ; this 
being succeeded by two or three other actions, in which he also 
obtained the advantage. Upon this, Mehemet made a demon- 
stration against tlie northern end of the enemy's lines, and he 
even attained a position near Rustchuk which menaced Sistova 
and the main bridnre on the Danube. The czarowitch now fell 
back to the Jantra, and for some days, it is now known, there 
was considerable alarm in the invaders' camp for the communi- 
cations, which appeared imperilled. But Mehemet was, as 
usual, halting and slow, and he remained on the Lom, probably 
unequal to strike a bold blow at this important moment. 



644 HISTORY OF DOMIXIOX of CANADA, 

28. These demonstrations of Mehemet on the Lorn — they 
scarcely deserve a more serious name — were foHowed by a 
sortie from Plevna, made by a division of Osman's 'forces. 
This attack, however, had little result, and we mention it only 
as an indication of a general plan on the part of the Turks, at 
this juncture to assume the defensive. By the first days of 
September the prospects of the Turks, which had been promising 
three weeks before, had once more become overclouded ; .their 
scheme of attack had altogether failed ; and, as reinforcements 
were approaching their enemy, the Imlance of fortune, which at 
one moment might possibly have been turned in their favor, was 
evidently inclining once more against them. In considering the 
causes of this failure two or three circumstances are very ap- 
parent. It is evident, in the first place, how imperfect and 
weak were the Turkish armies when they endeavored to attack, 
and how utterly inferior to their antagonists. Brave and ex- 
cellent as the soldiery were, they were, to a great extent, without 
the means of making rapid marches and elfective manoeuvres ; 
their transport service and commissariat were l)ad, and their 
officers had little skill and instruction. The backwardness, in 
a word, of the Ottoman race revealed itself in its organization 
for war; and, however well the troops could defend positions, 
they could not equal the Russians when on the offensive. 
Neverthless, as we have endeavored to show, the Turks really 
had a fair chance of success from the 31st of July to the third 
week of August, had their operations been ably conducted, so 
great had been the results of the defeat at Plevna, and so com- 
paratively small the number of their foes. In examining the 
reasons why they did not succeed, the principal blame attaches 
to the chief who, from first to last, had in this contest a baleful 
influence on the Ottoman cause. As we have, we think, 
demonstrated, Suleiman Pasha ought to have joined Mehemet, 
and was expected to do so, and this junction might have changed 
the position of affairs. He chose, however, to diverge to the 
Shipka I^ass, and from this moment the one strategic movement 
that might have had results became all tut hopeless. In 
addition, the pasha ruined an army in his frantic efforts to force 
a i^assage ; and, though he gave some proof of tactical skill, this 
reckless persistency was almost criminal. As for Mehemet Ali, 
he certainly displayed no energy in his operations on the Lorn; 
but it must be borne in mind that, without his colleague, he had 
not the means of decisive action ; he was like a bird that tries 
to fly though deprived of a wing. Besides, he was viewed 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



G45 



with dislike and distrust, as a renegade, by his Moslem lieuten- 
ants, and it is certain that more than once they refused, even 
when in the field, to obey his orders. 

29. During these weeks, full of intense interest, the Russian 




ABD-UL-KERIM PASHA, TURKISH COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF. 

commanders retained the positions in Bulgaria which they had 
l^reviously held, and stood on the defensive only. Gourko 
having retreated behind the Balkans, they still continued on an 
extended line from the ShipkaPass to the banks of the Danube, 
one flank being spread out on the Lom, another being detained 



G4G HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

round Plevna, and their base and front being very narrow. 
This was certainly a bad military position ; it exi)()sod their 
corps to defeat in detail, and a single reverse might have- been 
disastrous. On the hypothesis that they would be on the defen- 
sive only until the arrival of their supports, they would have 
done better, in a military point of view, had they fallen behind 
the Balkan passes, and concentrated in united strength on a 
point extending from Plevna to the Loni, their connnunications 
with the Daimbe being, at the same time, covered. In a 
position like this they might probably have detied the Turks, 
though twofold in numbers ; whereas they certainly ran a great 
risk, and allowed themselves to incur real danger. Their dis- 
jiositions, besides, were defective, even in the arrangements 
they actually made. The Sliipka Pass was too weakly held, 
and the czarowitch made the great mistake of endeavoring to 
cover the whole line of the Lorn, instead of guarding only its 
most important passages, — a mistake that might have been well 
punished. IMoreover, as it is true defensive strategy, especially 
against a slow-moving enemy, to attack whenever there is a 
good occasion, the Russian leaders, according to rule, ought not 
to have been contented with a mere passive defence, but should 
hav^c endeavored, if possible, to strike sometimes, which, in 
their situation, Avas not at all impossil)le. Holding as they did 
a central position between sluggish armies at great distances, 
they might have dealt heavy blows at their divided enemies, and 
by these means might have obtained victory instead of merely 
averting defeat. In spite, however, of these shortcomings, we 
are not disposed altogether to agree in the censure which has 
been lavished upon them. Their system of passive defence was 
successful ; they seem to have fairly measured the capacity of 
their foes, and they at least avoided any serious reverse. Bul- 
garia, moreover, it must be borne in mind, is not adapted to 
rai)id manonivres ; the Russian troops, too, had sutfered a great 
deal, and it might have been hazardous to attempt the very 
operations which, in theory, would appear promising. As for 
the concentration of the Russian armies in better positions than 
those they held, this would have been surrendering a large part 
of Bulgaria to the horrors of Turkish crime and outrage ; and 
mere military considerations were i)robably postponed to the re- 
quirements of a policy which could not permit such a desertion 
as this in a wur of the kind. 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 647 

CHAPTER XLIX. 

THE EASTERN QUESTION. 

DIPLOMACY BEFORE AND AFTEn THE WAR THE DEAD-LOCK IN EUROPE 

ENGLAND AND RUSSIA ON THE VERGE OF WAR PKEPAKATIONS FOR A CON- 
TEST THE DIFFERENT PIIASES OF THE SITUATION. 

1. Soon after the declaration of war by the czar, Count 
8ch()iivah)ir, the Russian ambassador in liondon, had a conli- 
dential communication with Lord Derby upon the subject of his 
government's intentions in making war upon Turkc^y.' Tiiis 
conversation took place on the 8th of June, 1877. It was pub- 
lished for the first time in a memorandum contained in the J*ar- 
liamcnt Paper Xo. 1'), on the 18th of February, 1878. It is a 
document of the highest importance, not only because it enables 
tho world to compare Russia's statements at the commencement 
of the war with her proposals at its close, but also l)ecause it 
proves how fully the Russian government laid its inventions 
before the English cabinet. At the end of July, 1877, that is, 
about six weeks later, this conversation of Count 8chouvaloft''s 
was further confirmed by what the Emperor Alexander himself 
said to Colonel Wellesley, who communicated the imperial state- 
ment to Lord Derby, in August, 1877. 

2. Count Schouvaloff observed that, "With regard to Con- 
stantinople, our assurances can only refer to taking possession 
of the town or occupying it permanently. It would be singular 
and without precedent if, at the outset of a war, one of the 
belligerents undertook l)eforehand not to pursue its military 
operations uj) to the walls of the capital. It is not im[)ossibl(; 
that the obstinacy of the Turks, especially if they knew them- 
selves to be guaranteed against such an eventuality, may pro- 
long the war, instead of bringing it to a speedy termination. 
When once the English ministry is fidly assured that we shall 
in no circumstances remain at Constantinople, it will depend 
on England and the other powers to relieve us of th(^ necessity 
of even approaching the town." The count admits that as re- 
gards the Straits, that is " a question which can only be resettled 

' Compiled from a skftrh in " British Quarterly Ilevic^v," written by John W. Probyn, 
aLo IVom the Londoa " Times " and " News." 



648 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



by a genei-al agreement." lie afterwards states that "what is 
absolutely necessary to Russia is that she should put an end to 
the continual crisis in the East, firstly, by establishing the 
superiority of her arms so thoroughly that in future the Turks 




LIELTEXANT-GEXEKAL SKOBELEFF, OF THE RUSSIAN ARMY. 



will not be tempted to defy her lightly ; and, secondl}^ by placing 
the Christians, especially those of Bulgaria, in a position which 
would effectually guarantee them against the abuses of Turkish 
administration." The count will not admit any restrictions on 
the operations of war, because they must remain subordinated 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. G19 

to military requirements. "But," he adds, "the consequences 
of this war can be confined beforehand within certain hmits 
agreed upon. We could give at the present moment (8th of 
June, 1877) the assurance that, if the neutrality of the powers 
be maintained, and the Porte sues for peace before our armies 
cross the Balkans, the emperor would agree not to cross that 
line. In this case peace might be concluded on the following 
terms : Bulgaria, up to the Balkans, to be made an autonomous 
vassal province under the guaranty of Europe. The Turkish 
troops and olKcials to be removed from it, and the fortresses 
disarmed and razed. Self-government to be established in it, 
with the support of a national militia, to be organized as soon 
as possible. The powers to agree to assure to that part of Bul- 
garia which is to the south of the Balkans, as well as to the 
other Christian provinces of Turkey, the best possible guaranty 
for a regular administration." A few days later the llussian 
government notified to Lord Derby its change of opinions as re- 
garded that part of Bulgaria to the south of the Balkans, saying 
that the separation of Bulgaria into two provinces would be im- 
practicable. "Local information proved that Bulgaria must 
remain a single province, otherwise the most laborious and in- 
telligent of the Bulgarian population, and notably that which 
had suffered from Turkish maladministration, would remain ex- 
cluded from autonomous institutions." As to Montenegro and 
Servia, they were — 

To receive an increase of territory, to be determined by common agi-ee- 
ment. Bosnia and Herzegovina to be provided with sucli institutions as 
may by common consent be judgeil compatible with their internal state, and 
calculated to guarantee them a good indigenous administration. These 
provinces being situated conterminously with Austro-Hungary gives the 
latter a right to a preponderating voice in their future organization. Servia, 
like Bulgaria, to remain under the suzerainty of the sultan, the relations of 
the suzerain and the vassals to be detined in a manner to prevent disputes. 
As regards Roumania, wliich has just proclaimed its independence, the 
emperor is of opini(m that this is a question which cannot be settled except 
by a general understanding. If these conditions are accepted the different 
cabinets would be able to exercise a collective pressure on the Porte, warn- 
ing it that if it refused it would be left to take the consequences of the w'ar. 
If the Porte sues for peace and accejjts the terras enumerated above before 
our armies have crossed the line of the Balkans, Russia would agree to 
make peace, but reserves to herself the right of stipulating for certain special 
advantages as compensatinn for the costs of the war. These advantages 
would not exceed the portion of Bessarabia ceded in ISoti as far as the 
north(!rn branch of the Danube (that is to say, the delta formed by tlie 
mouths of that river remains excluded), and the cession of Batoimi with 
adjacent ten-itory. In this case Roumania could be compensated by a com- 
mon agreement, either by the proclamation of its independence, or, if it re- 



650 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

mained a vassal state, by a portion of the Dobrudscha. If Austro-Hungary, 
on her side, demanded compensation, either for the extension acquired by 
Russia, or as a security against the new arrangements above mentioned for 
the benefit of the Christian principalities in Balkan peninsula, Russia would 
not oppose her seeking such compensation in Bosnia and partly in Herze- 
govina. Such are the bases to which his majesty the emperor would give 
his consent, with a view of establishing an understanding with Enghmdand 
with Europe, and of arriving at a speedy peace. Count Schouvaloff is 
authorized to sound Lord Derby {pressentir Vojnnion) on the subject of 
these conditions of peace, without concealing from him the value which the 
imperial cabinet attaches to a good understanding with the cabinet of Lon- 
don. To resume, if the Porte sues for peace, and accepts the above terms 
before the Russian armies have crossed the Balkans, the emperor Avould 
consent not to press the operations of war any farther. If the Turkish gov- 
ernment refuses, Russia would be obliged to jjursue the war until the Forte 
was forced to agree to peace. In tliis case the tei'ms cf the imperial cabinet 
might be altered. In thus indicating witii perfect openness the object which 
the emperor has in view, and which he will not exceed so long as the war 
is confined to this side of the Balkans, his majesty oilers a means of localiz- 
ing the war and preventing the dissolution of the Turkish Empire ; but it is 
important for the emperor to know if, within the limits indicated, he can 
count upon the neutrality indicated, — a neutrality whicli would exclude 
even a temporary occupation of Constantinople and the Straits by the latter 
power. Lord Derby said that Count Schouvaloff could not expect to receive 
from him an answer to proposals so important as the above, and that he 
would confer on the subject with his colleagues. 

3. Mr. Layard, the English ambassador at Constantinople, 
on being consulted by Lord Derby as to these terms of peace, 
to which Russia would agree if they were carried out before she 
crossed the Balkans, replied in efl'ect that such terms were in- 
admissible. INIr. Layard deprecated the idea of England being 
the medium of communicating them to the Porte. He virtually 
argued in favor of forcible intervention on behalf of Turkey, for 
he wrote : "It is vital to our gravest interests, to interests the 
importance of which no words can adequately describe, much 
less exaggerate, that we should be ready to interpose to save 
the Turkish Empire from complete dissolution." Somewhat 
later, on the 2d of August, 1877, Mr. Layard states that the 
sultan "could not, under present circumstances, either propose 
or listen to any conditions of peace." This is founded on the 
recent successes of the Turkish arms at Plevna, Eski Sagra, 
and in Asia. The Turks "feel confident that the enemy will 
be ultimately repulsed and driven out of Bulgaria, as he has 
been out of Armenia." 

4. It was about the 20th of July, 1877, that Col. Wellesley 
made the following very important communication to Lord 
Derljy : " On taking leave of the Emperor of Russia at Biela 
(Bulgaria) on the 30th ult., his majesty was pleased to make 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 651 

certain remarks to me respecting the present political situation, 
with a view to their being communicated to her majest3''s gov- 
ernment. After my interview 1 made a short memorandum of 
his majesty's observations, which I have now the honor to sub- 
mit to your lordship. I submitted the enclosed memorandum 
to the emperor before my departure, and his majesty informed 
me that it was correct. At the emperor's request I had the 
honor to furnish him with a copy of it. 

"Memorandum. 

" BiELA, Bulgaria, July 17-29, 1877. 
"His majesty the emperor, in consequence of the false reports current 
in England respecting alleged Russian atrocities, thought it might be useful 
for me to rejiort personally to her majesty's government the true state of 
affairs. In an interview which 1 had before my departure his majesty was 
pleased to make the following remarks to me, and at the same time author- 
ized me to communicate them to my government. His majesty repeated 
what he had already said to Lord A. Loftus at Livadia and to myself at 
Simnitza. The object of the i)resent war was solely the amelioration of the 
condition of the Christian population of Turkey. The conditions of peace 
required by the emperor are those lately communicated to Loi-d Derby by 
Count Schouvaloflf, and Avill remain the same as long as England maintains 
her position of neutrality. If, however, England abandons that position, 
matters Avill have entered on a new phase. His majesty lias no ideas of 
annexation beyond that i^erhaps of the territory Russia lost in 1856, and 
perhaps that of a certain portion of Asia Minor. The emperor will not 
occupy Constantinople for the sake of military honor, but only if such a 
step is rendered necessary by the march of events. His majesty is ready to 
enter into negotiations for peace if suitable propositions are made by the 
sultan, but mediation in favor of Turkey could not be entertained. Europe 
will be invited to aconferenceforthe linal settlement of the conditions of peace. 
The emperor has not the slightest wish or intention in any way to menace the 
interests of England, either with regard to Constantinople, Egypt, the Suez 
Canal, or Lidia. With respect to India his majesty not only considers it 
impossible to do so, but an act of folly if practicable. His majesty assured 
me that the Triple Alliance was formed for the preservation of ])eace, and 
without any idea of aggression, or of ollence to England, with which coun- 
try his majesty lias every desire to remain on friendly terms. A temporary 
occupation of Bulgaria will be necessary. His majesty lias never enter- 
tained liostile feelings towards England, nor has he desired to give her 
offence ; but if one is determined to chcrcher midi a quatorze heurcs, it is 
easy to take offence at anything. The emperor fears that the present policy 
of England only tends to encourage the Turks, and consequently to prolong 
the war; and considers tiiat if English influence were brought to bear on 
the Porte, the sultan would be ready to come to terms, and thus a war, re- 
gretted and felt by all Europe, would be brought to a speedy conclusion." 

"Memorandum for Colonel Welleslet. 

"August 14, 1877. 
"Her majesty's government have considered the communication brought 
by Colonel Wellesley from the Emperor of Russia with all the attention 



652 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



which its importance deserves. They have received with satisfaction the 
statement made l)y liis majesty as to the object of the war in which he is 
engaged, his disclaimer of any extensive ideas of annexation, and his readi- 
ness to enter into negotiations for jjeace. They are grateful for the assur- 
ance which he had given of his intention to respect the interests of England. 
It is the earnest desire of her majesty's government to contribute to the re- 
establishment of i^eace, and in the meanwhile they have no intention of 
departing from that attitude of strict, though contUtional, neutrality which 
they have hitherto observed." 

The English government goes onto express its intention to do 
what it can in the intei'csts of peace, and decUires that the policy 
of England does not tend to encourage the Turks, and so pro- 
long the war. 

5. From these important documents, dated June and July, 
1877, it appears that the Russian terms, provided peace were 

made before the 
imperial armies 
crossed the Bal- 
kans, were that 
Russia would 
make no annex- 
ations except 
that, perhaps, 
of the territory 
Russia lost in 
185G in Bessa- 
rabia, and a cer- 
tain portion of 
Asia Minor ; 
that the amel- 
ioration of the 
condition of the 
Christian pop- 
ulations of Tur- 
key Avas to be 
attained by 
means of an au- 
tonomous Bul- 
garian province 
north and south 
of the Balkans ; 

by Bosnia and Herzegovina being provided with institutions 
judged compatible with their internal condition, and calculated 




GENERAL NEPOKOITSCHITSKY 
THE KUSSIAN AKMV 



, CHIEF OF THE STAFF OF 
ON THE DANUBE. 



to guarantee them a good indiixenous administration. 



Austro- 



A 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 653 

Hungary was to have a preponderating voice in this question. 
Montenegro and Servia were to have an increase of territory. 
Servia, like Bulgaria, was to be under the suzerainty of the 
Porte. The independence of Roumania was to be settled by 
general agreement. A pledge Avas given by llussia that she 
w^ould not hold Constantinople permanently ; but l)oth Count 
Schouvaloff, in his conversation Avith Lord Derby, and the 
Emperor Alexander, in his interview with Colonel Wcllesley, 
distinctly said that circumstances might lead Russia to occupy 
the city as a temporary measure. Col. Welleslcy's Avords are : 
''The emperor will not occupy Constantinople for the sake of 
military honor, but only if such a step is rendered necessary 
by the march of events." The question of the Straits and the 
opening of the Black Sea was onl}^ to be "resettled by gen- 
eral agreement." The emperor declared he had no intention of 
menacing England's interests cither with regard to Constanti- 
nople, Egypt, or the Suez Canal. A temporary occupation of 
Bulgaria would be necessary. Europe Avould l)e invited to a 
conference for the final settlement of the conditions of peace. 

6. To these remarkably outspoken and plain avowals of 
Russia's demands, if peace were made before her armies crossed 
the I'alkans, the English cabinet replied : her majesty's govern- 
ment, " has received with satisfaction the statement made by his 
majesty as to the object of the war in which he is engaged, his 
disclaimer of any extensive ideas of annexation, and his readi- 
ness to enter into negotiations for peace." 

7. These proposals of Russia, which in some respects at 
least gave " satisfaction " to the English government, were not 
laid before the Porte ; JNIr. Layard's vicAVs, and the successes 
of Turkey at Plevna and in Armenia, being the chief causes 
which prevented negotiations being undertaken on any such 
basis in the summer of 1877. Thus the AA^ar AA'as alk)AA'ed to 
proceed without an effectual effort being made to stay its course. 
After some four or five months of terrible fighting, and yet 
more terrible sufferings, Turkey utterly succumbed to her ad- 
versary. Then it Avas that the Eastern question entered upon 
a ncAv phase, — the phase of Russia making peace, upon her oAvn 
terms, with the Ottoman poAver, as it lay prostrate at her feet. 
The exact terms of the preliminaries of peace concluded 
between Russia and Turkey at San Stefano, on the 3d of 
March, have noAV been communicated to Europe. Their 
substance may be stated as folloAvs : — 



654 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



The opening articles of the treaty relate to Montenegro, Servia, Rou- 
mania, and Bulgaria. The indemnity to be paid by Turkey is fixed at one 
billion four hundred and ten million roubles, one billion one hundred 
million of which are represented by cessions of territory. No guaranty is 
stipulated, and no mention is made of the Egyptian and Bulgarian tributes 
or of a cession of the Turkish fleet. The treaty states that the Russian and 
Turkish governments shall come to an understanding, subsequently upon 
the mode of payment of the remaining three hundred and ten million 
roubles. Servia and Montenegro are to be completely independent, and 
receive increase of territory. All the Bulgarian fortresses are to be 
demolished, and no Turkish garrisons will remain in Bulgaria. A military 
road is to be established for the Turkish posts and telegraphs, and the pas- 
sage of Turkish regular troops, Avhowill not, however, be allowed to make 
any stay in the country wiiile passing through. Mussulmans may return to 
Bulgaria. If within two years hence they shall not have settled all affairs 
connected with their property, the latter will be sold for the benefit of the 
AVidows' and orplians' fund. The arrears of taxes in Bosnia and Herzecro- 
yina are not to be claimed. The revenue until 1880 is to be applied" to 
indemnify the sufterers by the insurrection, and to provide for local needs. 
In case of disputed claims, Austrian and Russian commissioners will act as 
arbitrators. The navigation of the Straits is declared free for merchant 
vessels both in time of peace and war. Fifty thousand Russian troops, 
consisting of six divisions of infantry and two of cavalry, will occupy Bul- 
garia for about two years, until the formation of a Bulgarian militia, the 
strength of wiiich is to be fixed later between Turkey and Russia. The 
Russian army of occupation will preserve its communications with Russia, 
both by way of Roumania and by tiie Black Sea ports of Varna and Bouro-as,' 
and the necessary depots will be established. The Russian troops durint^ 
their stay will be maintained at the expense of the country. The war 
material in the Bulgarian fortresses, including Shumla and Varna, remains 
the property of the Porte. Batoum, Ardahan, Kars, and Bayazid, with the 
territories comprised, are ceded to Russia. A treaty is to be concluded 
between Turkey and Roumania. The latter is to become quite independent 
and is authorized to make her demand for indemnity direct to the Forte.- 
No indemnity for Montenegro or Servia is stipulated. Servians and Mon- 
tenegrins travelling or established in Turkey will be subject to the Ottoman 
laws in so far as the latter are not contrary to international law. Russian, 
Turkish, and Bulgarian commissioners will determine the amount of the 
Bulgarian tribute according to the average actual revenue. 

The reforms stipulated at the first sitting of the conference will be applied 
in Bosnia and the Herzegovina. Thessaly and Epirus will have an organiza- 
tion similar to that of Ch-ete in 18G8. The privileges of the monks of Rus- 
sian origin at Mount Athos are maintained. No mention is made of the 
occupation of Erzeroum or Trebizond, but the Russian troops have the 
right to embark at Trebizond on returning to Russia. The period fixed for 
the Russian evacuation of Turkish territory in Asia is six months. The 
evacuation of Turkish territory will commence immediately, and be com- 
pleted within three months. The European commission for the navigation 
of the Danube preserves its rights intact. The Forte engages to reestablish 
the navigation at its own expense, and to indemnity private persons who 
have suffered loss by the war. This double charge, which will not amount 
to less than fifty thousand francs, will be deducted from the sums due from 
the commission to the Forte. Fending this conclusion of a new treaty of 
commerce between Russia and Turkey, the present tariffs remain as before 
the war. Turkey undertakes to settle in a conciliatory spirit all actions • 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 655 

between Russia and Turkish subjects, and to execute immediately all legal 
judgments already delivered. The treaty declares that Russia, not wishing 
to annex territory, receives the Dobrudscha, in order to cedeittoRoumania 
in exchange for the Roumanian portion of Bessarabia. Bulgaria is to be 
constituted an autonomous tributary principality, with a Christian governor 
freely elected by the population, contirmed by the Porte with the assent of 
the powers. The province is to have a national militia. Where Bulgarians 
are mixed with Turks, Greeks, and others, account is to be taken of the 
rights and interests of all these latter peoples in the elections and in the 
preparations of the organic laws. 

8. There is much that is good in these preliminaries of 
peace, but they by no means do enough for Greece. Happily 
England has proposed to admit a representative of Greece to 
the Congress. The English government is much to be com- 
mended for taking that step ; it should also bear in mind the 
question of Armenia. To this province should be given a 
system of local self-government, to be enjoyed alike by the 
Armenian Christians and by the industrious and orderly Turkish 
village populations. They should all be united together to 
defend themselves against the inroads of those lawless savages, 
the Koords and Circassians, from whom the Porte is either 
unable or unwilling to defend its Armenian subjects. But 
whatever defects there may be in the Russo-Turkish prelimi- 
naries of peace, it is not clear that they do not infringe in any way 
the statement made, in June last, by Count Schouvaloli' to Lord 
Derby, and they attack those English interests which the latter 
declared his government could not allow to be assailed. No 
doubt these San Stefano terms go beyond the demands made 
last summer by the Russian ambassador, but he specially inti- 
mated that those demands depended upon his government not 
having to prosecute the war beyond the Balkan ranges. The 
Russian armies having had to force their way across those 
mountains after desperate lighting, with severe losses, itis natural 
that the preliminaries of peace, exacted by the victor, should be 
all the more onerous. It does not, however, follow that Russia 
alone is to settle the Eastern question ; indeed, she has herself 
admitted that important portions of it must necessarily be sub- 
mitted to assembled Europe. Nor will Europe consent simply 
to register the proposals of Russia. On the contrary, they 
must be carefully considered by all the great powers. If they 
would do so with the hope of laying something like a good 
foundation for the future peace of Europe, and the gradual, 
tliough perhaps not immediate, solution of the many intricate 
questions touching the welfare of the various creeds and races 



65G HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

of what was European Turkey, that hope can only be realized 
by bringing to the task such a spirit of justice as will make the 
welfare of those populations and their civil and religious liber- 
ties paramount to all other considerations. 

9. It is much to l)e hoped, in the interests of all Europe, that 
another phase of this Eastern question Avill soon be reached by 
the meeting of a European Congress, to settle the new status 
of the peoples inhal)iting the Balkan peninsula. This is the 
great problem to which the chancellor of the exchequer re- 
ferred, in the House of Commons, on the *Jth of February, 1878, 
when he said, " We recognize that questions have now to be 
settled the discussion of which will amount to a reconstruction 
of the whole system of south-eastern Europe." In such a ques- 
tion England must and ought to have a voice : that voice, too, 
must be on the side of humanity, freedom, and progress, if it 
is to be in harmony with both her interests and her duty. She 
must ally herself to the living forces of the future, instead of 
crippling herself by hopeless elibrts to uphold the effete sys- 
tems of the past. As the chancellor truly said, "England is 
the foremost representative of the spirit of freedom." She 
ought, therefore, in the assembly of the European powers to 
prove herself worthy of this high vocation. It is for the gov- 
ernment of that great and free country to see to it that she de- 
clares, with no uncertain sound, for the cause of liberty and 
right. That this may be so is to be hoped from the chancel- 
lor's words : "I wish to repudiate with all the energy I can 
command .... that there is any desire on our part to 
cripple or fetter the extension of free and good government to 
the Christian populations in Turkey." That is a wise resolve, 
for thus ouly can be obtained the end which Sir Stafford de- 
sires, viz., "such a settlement as will ofler reasonable promise 
of a durable peace ; an arrangement of such a character as will 
leave as few points as possible of contact and difficulty for the 
admission of intrigue and future struggle." If England's gov- 
ernment enter upon the Avork of the "reconstruction" of- the 
whole system of what was European Turkey in such a spirit, 
and remain true to it throughout, England may hope to see that 
freedom, of which she is "the foremost representative," dawn 
upon those fair provinces of Europe hitherto blighted by the 
misrule of venal and tyrannical pashas. But the work must be 
done faithfully and thoroughly, not marred in the doing of it, 
as in the case of the Greek kingdom some tifty years ago. 

10. AVhat, then, are the chief questions which Europe is now 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 



65T 



called upon to decide or ratify? First comes the case of Eou- 
mania, which it is proposed to erect into an independent State. 
This will receive general assent, but it should be done with- 
out calling up- 
on Roumania 
to cede that 
portion of ter- 
ritory which 
lies just to the 
north of the 
mouths of the 
Danube. The 
o^allant fight 
and national 
sacrifices made 
by the Rouma- 
nians for their 
complete inde- 
pendence ought 
to protect them 
from any dimi- 
nution what- 
ever of their 
country's terri- 
tory. At the 
same time it 
would conduce 
more to the 
freedom of the 
navigation of 

the Danube (which is a European, and especially an Austro-Gor- 
man, interest), if the mouths of that great river Avere in the 
hands of Roumania rather than Russia. The possession of them 
by the former can be no real detriment to the latter, for Russia 
has ample power to protect her own interests. If, hoAvever, 
she insists u})on taking this strip of territory, she will but pro- 
duce feelings of distrust and dislike towards herself on the part 
of the Roumanians ; while England, by advocating the oppo- 
site policy, will gain their good-will and confidence. 

11. An increase of territory, and complete independence be- 
stowed upon Servia and jNIontenegro, should also receive the 
hearty support of England and of Europe. No worse policy 
can be pursued than that of a niggardly attempt to restrict such 




IIOBAIIT I'ASHA. 



658 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



an increase. It would bo a far wiser policy on the part of such 
powers as Austria and England to demand a larger, rather than 
a smaller, addition of territory for these Servians and Monte- 
negrins. The only, effect of any attempt to diminish what it is 
proposed now to give them would be. to throw them wholly 
into the arms of Kussia. If the latter power be as bad as her 
enemies paint her, what folly can be greater than that of so 
dealing with these rising nationalities as thus to force them to 
look to Russia as their only friend ? If the professed opponents 
of the czar are blind enough still to continue this stupid policy, 
they will have but themselves to thank that Russia's influence 
and power are increased, as they surely will be. This auo-men- 
tation of the territory of Servia and Montenegro affects Austria 
more than any other country. She should therefore be specially 
consulted in the matter. This Count Schouvaloff very prop- 
erly admitted in his conversation with Lord Derby in June, 
1877. It has been suggested that a portion, at any rate, of 
Bosnia, should be given to Austria. This is all the more just 
and reasonable because it appears that the people themselves 
are by no means unwilling to agree to such a transfer. It may 
well be so, both from geographical and commercial reasons, and 
also because the inhabitants are Slaves, like their neighbors of 
the Austrian border provinces. Austro-Hungary cannot do 
better for its own interests, at any rate since the great changes 
effected by the late w^ar, than befriend to the utmost Servia, 
Montenegro, Roumania, Bulgaria, and Greece. These coun- 
tries will thereby become reconciled to Austria, and cease to 
look upon her with aversion as their more or less avowed adver- 
sary. She should aim at making them as free and strong as 
possible, and so win them to her instead of driving them from 
her. The opposite policy will only play into the hands of Rus- 
sia by repelling these nationalities from the Austro-Hungarian 
State, and so actually obliging them (often much against their 
will) to gravitate towards the great northern power. A more 
short-sighted policy than this it is difficult to imagine. It de- 
scends to an infatuated blindness when advocated by those who 
call themselves the enemies of Russia. Enemies ! If such they 
be, Russian statesmen have assuredly ftir more reason to bless 
them than to curse them. The Slave populations in the Balkan 
peninsula must and will become free. They have as much rio-ht 
to throw off a hated yoke as Italians or Hungarians. If Aus- 
tria and the Western powers be wise, they will aid the Slave in 
so doing, by demanding for him real and complete emancipa- 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 659 



tion. That is the best, indeed the only, way of defeating what- 
ever of sinister or selfish there may be in the designs of Russian 
politicians or diplomatists. Those who thiiili the worst of the 
government of St. Petersburg should be foremost in demanding 
the largest possible increase of the liberties of Roumania, Ser- 
via, Montenegro, Bulgaria, and Greece, with due regard to the 
claims of each. These countries desire freedom ; they do not 
desire subjection to the czar in the place of subjection to the 
sultan. English and Austrian interests are therefore clearly in 
harmony with the independence of these countries. Once con- 
tented with their lot, the intrigues of Pan-Slavist or other soci- 
eties will be rendered hopeless. If England and France, Aus- 
tria and Italy, adopt this policy of efiectually assisting these 
rising nationalities, they Avill feel that their liberties have the 
friendly support of those governments, at least as much as that 
of St. Petersburg. If this latter should harbor selfish designs, 
she will find them baffled by the fact of real independence and 
national self-government having spread contentment among 
Slave and Greek populations > hitherto kept in a perpetual fer- 
ment of discontent by the misrule of alien, tyrannical, and 
venal pashas. Yet it was in aid of this same Porte that some 
Englishmen, in their blindness, would have had English blood 
and treasure wasted not seeing (what the last twenty-two years 
have abundantly proved) , that the Turkish government is rot- 
ten ; that to seek to maintain it is not only to strive after the 
impossible, but also to alienate the peoples who hate the Porte's 
perverse supremacy, and thereby throw them into the arms of 
Russia. 

12. Hungarians seem especially inclined to adopt the short- 
sighted policy of upholding Turkish rule. They have some 
excuse for their blindness, for they cannot forget the brutality 
with which the autocrat Nicholas put down their liberties. Now 
there is no lover of freedom who does not rejoice that that mon- 
strous wrong has been righted, and Hungary's ancient rights 
restored, so that she is to-day the free member of a free State. 
But Hungarians must be reminded that they are not the only 
people who have a right to freedom. The Slave and the Greek 
have just as much right to get rid of the tyraimy of the sultan 
as ever the Hungarians had to get rid of the i)ast tyranny of 
the Hapsburg or the czar. Now no Slave, till hitely governed 
by Turkey, has any wish to be governed from St. Petersburg, 
but from Bucharest, Belgrade, Cettinge, or Tirnova, as the case 
may be. If forced, indeed, to choose between czar or sultan, 



660 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

he will no doubt choose the former ; but if he obtain the op- 
portunity of becomiug really free from both, and of being gov- 
erned by rulers of his own choice, he will avail himself of such 
an occasion as readily as Italians seized upon the good fortune 
of freeing themselves from French interference and from Aus- 
trian rule. 

13. It is also proposed to create a semi-independent 
Bulgaria, stretching from the Danube to the south of the Bal- 
kans. The more nearly independent this province is, the 
better hope there will be for a settlement which Avill prove 
lasting- To free it altogether from the Porte, with the excep- 
tion of paying a fixed annual tribute, would be the best arrange- 
ment. To deliver it wholly from Turkish soldiers and Turkish 
police, would be to deliver it from the chances of future dis- 
turbance, and would, therefore, be good alike for Bulgaria 
and for Europe. That there must be a temporary occupation 
of the province by Russian troops during the process of form- 
ing a local administration and police, is a necessary consequence 
of the circumstances under which its freedom has been eftected. 
It would, indeed, have been better if that freedom had been 
the work of united Europe, instead of being left to the strong 
arm of Russia alone ; but this latter instrumentality having 
been allowed to operate singly, at the cost of immense sacri- 
fices, Russia naturally claims to l)e the sole guardian. Happily 
it is for her interest to exercise her guardianship with modera- 
tion and without a needless prolongation of it ; for were she to 
act otherwise she would but set Bulgarians against her, and 
alienate those whom it is her interest to conciliate. The ques- 
tion of the southern boundary of this province is one of no 
slight difficulty, for in that direction the Greek and Bulgarian 
populations meet and intermingle. To In-ing Bulgaria down to 
to Saloncia would be manifestly unjust to the Greek, and to 
include Adrianople, unfair to the Turk, if, indeed (as seems 
for the present likely), the Turks and their sultan are still to 
rule over Constantinople and an adjoining territory of limited 
extent. But the boundaries should be so adjusted as not only 
to allow of the formation of the new Bulgarian province, but 
also of a greatly enlarged Greece. This latter kingdom ought 
to be increased by at least the whole of Thessaly, and a large 
portion of Albania and Macedonia. An addition of this de- 
scription, together with the island of Crete, should fall to the 
lot of Greece. Without some such arrangement the claims of 
the Greeks will remain unsatisfied, and thereby the durability 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 661 

of the new order of things will be imperilled. If English in- 
terests are to be considered in the matter, they clearly point to 
England's supporting such a policy. By all means let the 
Slaves be delivered from Turkish misrule, but no less deliver- 
ance should be given to the Greeks. If the former have found 
a friend in Kussia, the latter should find one in England. But 
to leave Greece confined to her present miserable limits would 
be equally unwise and unjust. To do so would merely be lay- 
ing up a cause of certain discontent and difiiculty for the 
future. The exact limits of those territorial chano:es must be 
left to the care of a European congress. Difiicult though the 
task may be, it does not ofler any insuperable obstacles. It 
requires chiefly to be directed by a spirit of justice, an honest 
determination to reconstruct south-eastern Europe with a 
special view to the well-being and contentment of its various 
creeds and races. 

14. The regulations concerning the Straits of the Dar- 
danelles and Bosphorus are of European importance. It is sat- 
isfactory to know that they are admitted to be so on all hands, 
and must therefore be determined by general agreement. It 
may be desirable to maintain these regulations as they now 
stand ; but not a little is to be said in favor of allowing the 
vessels of all nations — ships of war or merchantmen — to pass 
through the Straits as freely as they pass in and out of the 
Baltic. 

15. There is a point of great importance to which all the 
powers, and none more than England, should direct their 
earnest attention ; and that is the establishment and future 
maintenance of civil and religious liberty throughout these 
countries of the Balkan Peninsula. Every effort should be 
made to secure this great boon for all, whether Mahomodan or 
Christian, Bulgarian or Greek, Jew or Slave. What with op- 
pression by Turkish rulers, and their refusal to admit judicial 
equality as between believers and unbelievers ; what with the 
feuds and jealousies between difierent denominations of 
Christians ; what with the ill-treatment of Jews by lloumanians 
and Servians, — the • great principles of civil and religious 
liberty have been shamefully trampled under foot. If Eng- 
land be, as the chancellor of the exchequer justly said she 
was, "the foremost representative of the spirit of freedom," 
there is a field in which her great influence may work to the 
good of these various peoples so long misgoverned, as well as 
to her own honor. How great is the necessity for undertaking 



662 



HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 



such a work is known to all acquainted with the state of things 
in south-eastern Eur6pe. But, as much has been said, and 
very justl)^ said, of Mahomedan oppression, it is only right to 
add that Turks are not the only sinners against the principle 

of toleration. 
It is only too 
true that the 
Divine com- 
mand, "There- 
fore all things 
whatsoever ye 
would that 
men should do 
to you, do ye 
even so to 
them," has 
been habitual- 
ly set at nought 
by Chris- 
tian rulers in 
Church and 
State through- 
out the world, 
from the days 
of Constantine 
to the present 
hour. The fol- 
lowing state- 
ment, made by 
a Bulgarian 
Protestant, 

proves how real is the need for seeing that all creeds and races 
have religious liberty guaranteed to them in the future. Fran- 
cho Tourgoroff, pastor of the first Bulgarian Protestant Church 
at Bansko, Samokov Macedonia, thus writes at the beginning 
of this year, 1878: — 




GENERAL IGNATIEFF, RUSSIAN. 



1. The sufferings of the Protestant people in Bulgaria at the hands of 
the Greek Church authorities have been very great for years Yiast, and now 
are, and no confidence should on any account be placed in the promises of 
the said Church ; but a clause should be inserted in the treaty with the Euro- 
pean powers to secure full liberty of worship to Protestants and dissenters 
from the Greek Church. 

2. The spirit of cruelty, oppression, and superstition of the Greek Church 



ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 663 



in Bulgaria is as great as that of the Romish Church at the time of the 
Reformation in England. 

3. I was myself more than once imprisoned at the instigation of the 
Greek Church authorities ; and last year my life would have been taken had 
it not been for the active interference of Mr. Blunt, the English, consul at 
Salonica. 

4. The Mahomedan government officers, when uninfluenced, allow us 
free religious liberty, and permitted us to have the quiet use of the Lord's 
day ; and in some cases have even suspended collecting taxes, being told 
we transacted no secular business on that day. 

5. Much of the suffering of the poor Bulgarians has been from the rich 
members of the Greek Church, together with the Turkish tax-gatherers 
and governors, who, for their own unjust profit, unite together and plunder 
the people. 

6. Before the war began the Protestants were threatened by the mem- 
bers of the Greek Church that as soon as Russia comes they will be skinned 
alive, and letters of last week inform us that persecutions by the Greek 
Church have begun already. 

7. The Protestant ministers and people in Bulgaria dreaded the ap- 
proach of the Russian authority, joined as it is to the dark, cruel, and 
supex-stitious Greek Church ; and at the approach of the Bashi-Bazouks, 
some of the men dared not flee with the Russians for safety, but remained, 
and Avere massacred by the Bashi-Bazouks, in their place of worship. 

8. Lastly, I am prepared to make a statutory declaration of the correct- 
ness and ti'uthfulness of the above statements. 

(Signed) FRANCHO TOURGOROFF, 

Pastor of the Church at Bansko. 

16. Such a picture shows how deeply rooted is the abomina- 
tion of religious persecution. Now is the time to attack and 
overthrow it. More especially is it necessary to protect the 
smaller religious bodies from such injustice, inasmuch as the 
larger ones are better able to take care of themselves. The 
Mahomedans, too, who are left to dwell under the newly-formed 
governments, merit peculiar care, because from the very fact of 
the past tyranny of the Turkish officials, the Mussulmans who 
remain run the risk of becoming the victims of retaliatory 
vengeance. The consuls of the Christian powers, and foremost 
those of England, should carefully watch, and faithfully report 
to their governments, every instance of religious oppression, 
and so expose the perpetrators of this great evil, to whatever 
race or creed they may belong. 

17. In this matter the kingdom of Greece deserves special 
praise for the complete civil and religious liberty which its 

'constitution gives to all its subjects alike. Only quite lately 
M. Gennadius, the Greek Charge d' Affaires, in a public speech 
pointing out the material progress Greece has made during a 



664t HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA, 

single generation, added : " We have instituted a wide-spread 
educational organization, free of charge, unsectarian, and doing 
the work of the Greeks, not of the kingdom only, but of all the 
East. There is no branch of science or learning in which we 
cannot show men fully equal to the European average ; and the 
Jews, who during the protection of the Ionian Islands enjoyed 
no citizen rights, were admitted to au equal position with any 
Greek citizen, not by any special enactment, but by the simple 
fact of the union, for there never existed with us any disabil- 
ities ; and King George counts no more faithful and conteaited 
subjects than our IsraeHte brethren of Corfu, as they themselves 
declared about a year ago by their spontaneous notifications to 
the English press, and by the expressions of gratification con- 
veyed to me personally by some of their co-religionists in this 
country. And I may add that there exists no Mussulman 
community, except perhaps in India, more contented and free 
than our Mussulman fellow-citizens at Chalcis, to whom all 
public posts are as widely open as to any Greek at Athens." 
This is as it should be. Such an example is well worth the 
imitation of the new government of Bulgaria ; it is specially to 
be commended to Roumania and Servia, to the members of 
every race and creed throughout the Balkan Peninsula. The 
fact of the complete civil and religious liberty thus given by 
the constitution of the Greek kingdom is a strong argument 
for increasing that kingdom to the utmost possible extent which 
circumstances permit. England can adopt no better and wiser 
course than to further such extension ; it is both right and 
expedient, from whatever point of view it is looked at by Eng- 
lish statesmen. The influence of such a kingdom extending 
over as wide an area as possible would do incalculable good. 
It could not fail to promote the great cause of freedom among 
all the other races of south-eastern Europe. They would in- 
evitably have to follow such a lead, even if they were otherwise 
disposed. As it is, the people of Roumania, Bulgaria, Servia, 
and Montenegro, though grateful (as indeed they should be) 
for the assistance afforded to them by Russia, show no inclina- 
tion to be governed from St. Petersburg. They would be 
also stimulated to obtain complete freedom and the largest 
liberties, both civil and religious, if they saw the southern 
portion of the Balkan Peninsula in the full enjoyment of a con- 
stitution free as that of England herself. Thus liberty and 
contentment would become the normal condition of the peoples 






ENGLAND, AND THE UNITED STATES. 6Q5 

once misruled by the incapable, venal, and oppressive govern- 
ment of the Porte. Not only would such a change render 
foreign intrigues helpless, and secret societies useless, but it 
would exercise the happiest influence upon Russia herself. It 
is impossible that the Slave and Greek nationahties on her 
south-western frontier could be in the enjoyment of such a free 
system without creating among the Eussian people a desire to 
possess a like freedom themselves. It might very possibly not 
take just the same outward forms, but in one shape or another it 
would assuredly make its way into the land of the czars. Russia 
can no more escape the influences of liberty and progress than 
France, Italy, and Austria have escaped them. The Bona- 
partes, the Haps1)urgs, and all the former rulers of Italy, have 
had either to accept free institutions, or else have been over- 
thrown l)y them. The Romanofl's equally will have to adapt 
their rule to the liberal movement which has overflown the 
whole continent of Europe, or share the fate of those who offer 
to it a blind and unavailing resistance. The more completely 
Russia is surrounded by free nations the more certain is she 
herself to swell their numl)ers. Nor are the signs wanting that 
she is capable of wise and timely reform. The al^olitiou of 
serfdom, the enlargement of communal and municipal liberties, 
the reform of civil and criminal procedure, the institution of 
juries, the furtherance of national education, the more equit- 
able system of taxation and of conscrii)tion, the lessening of 
press restrictions, are all proofs, — given within the last twenty 
years, — not only that Russia has to submit to the great law of 
progress, but that she is capable of adapting herself to it. The 
formation on her southern frontier of new nationalities, freely 
governed and contented, in place of a system at once corrupt 
and tyrannical, based upon polygamy (the degradation of 
woman) and slavery (the degradation of humanity) , cannot but 
be productive of good. Such a change furthers the cause not 
only of liberty, but of order; it is the victory alike of justice 
and of progress. As such it harmonizes Avith the interests of 
all Europe, and, from the latest advices, it would seem that the 
fearful results of a war between England and Russia would be 
happily averted, and all that we have been picturing as desir- 
able for the populations of the disputed territories would be 
secured to them through nothing so much as. the good oflSces 
of the British government, — a government which has main- 
tained a firm and determined policy in this whole Eastern diffi- 



666 HISTORY OF DOMINION OF CANADA. 



culty, sometimes against the will and protest of all the great 
powers ; but we predict that when the war and its results shall 
have been calmly reviewed in the light of the near future, the 
government of Beaconsfield will receive the praise and admira- 
tion of the whole world ! 



THE END. 



LBuL '06 



